Net-Game
by Asharyn
Summary: Ryuko Matoi has plenty on her plate between college classes and pretending that she doesn't play video games. Everything goes to hell, though, when she meets a particularly troublesome person.


Ryuko Matoi had plenty on her plate. College classes had her damaged emotionally. The raucous parties had her physically impaired and, on top of all that, the stress of deadlines turned the mixture into a metaphorical Molotov cocktail. So when she could, she found solace in the act of kicking back in as few articles of clothing as possible to partake in a video game. Preferably, one that mirrored her own life as little as possible.

Of course, it was difficult to fit the time to do so into her schedule at first. Sneaking in hours of it during high school had been easy. She got so good at hiding the activity that it was almost as mythical as her stash of vintage porno mags. The sad fact of the matter was, unlike the vintage nude women, the video games barely fit her perceived image. Ryuko had a nasty habit of flaunting her bad side. To her, and those who admired or hated her, video games didn't fit into the narrow scope of "Wrong Side of the Tracks, Matoi Ryuko".

As tendency has with most bad habits, it followed her into her college career as well. She had thought so little of it at the time. A grievous mistake born of belligerent denial since she hadn't accounted for the workload she was bound to face. College had been a Lovecraftian beast in that regard.

It was by no shortage of luck that she managed to raise her grades just high enough to keep her scholarship. That was when she knew she'd have to wise up if she wanted to continue the gratifying act of ripping people apart in virtual space.

"Ryuko!" out of habit Ryuko jumped, slamming her laptop closed on the game that had been running as her dorm mate barged into her room.

"Shit- Mako! Fucking knock!" having her activity interrupted, Ryuko's aggression shot up. She grabbed the firmest pillow on her bed and flung it straight into Mako's face. The blow rocked Mako's short figure but did nothing to phase her ecstatic mood.

"Oooooh?" she mused excitedly while flinging herself onto Ryuko's bed. Ryuko watched as Mako playfully ran her finger across the curve of her laptops screen. "What were yah doin' Ryuko? Watchin'-" she took a dramatic pause, uttering her next word quietly "porn?"

Ryuko groaned and swiped the laptop away from Mako's teasing fingertip. "If it helps you sleep at night to have an answer, sure. I was watching porn."

There was a lengthy silence as Mako stared at Ryuko with an amused look. It thoroughly pissed her off.

"What the fuck do you want Mako? I love you, but you're cutting into my me time."

"Don't you have a class to go to Ryuko?" they spent another moment staring at each other. Ryuko's mind blanked.

With frantic and erratic motions, she flew from her bed, grabbing her backpack and shoving her laptop into it before pulling on a pair of jeans and her motorcycle jacket. She was barely dressed at all as she burst out of their dorm room. In the distance behind her, Ryuko could hear Mako calling out to her, telling her to have a good time in class.

"How could I forget I had class?" Ryuko panted as she trotted up the stairs of a red-brick building.

She thought it a bit odd that Mako, of all people, would remember Ryuko's schedule better than herself. It made sense, though. Ryuko reflected on how much time they had shared together since Mako's parents had taken her in off the streets as a kid. They had been near inseparable since then, even deciding to go to the same university after high school. She also recalled a conversation from a few days before, the subject of which had been Ryuko taking that particular night class.

" _Shut up, Mako! I'm perfectly capable of doing a night class!" Mako had braced herself in her signature pose before going off on a rant._

" _Ryuko! It's hard enough to get you out of bed to go to morning classes! Once you get home after your day you're going to be completely unwilling to go to your night class!" Ryuko had reached out and stilled Mako's thrashing arms which, consequently, had also stilled her flapping jaw._

" _Don't worry so much, Mako. Just you watch."_

Ryuko groaned as she sat down at the back of the class, pressing herself into the far right corner of the lecture hall. She wasn't ready to admit defeat to Mako on the subject, nor would she ever be, so she was just going to have to straighten out her schedule to make do with the class cutting into her gaming time.

Reaching into her bag, Ryuko retrieved her laptop and opened it up. Surprisingly, she hadn't been late and the lecture was only just starting. Another surprise was that she wasn't the last person to enter the room.

The last person in question didn't even look the part of slacker. She was dressed in a knee-length grey skirt and baby-blue dress shirt, her arm clutching a leather portfolio. Ryuko peered over her laptop screen as it booted up, watching the woman glance around the room for a spot to sit.

Ryuko mused silently to herself about how she couldn't help noticing the woman was completely and utterly her type. Black hair, cut straight at the ends and resting near her waist with bangs framing her face and pale, unblemished, skin… the woman locked eyes with Ryuko for a brief second, her eyes startlingly icy even at distance. Ryuko slid deep into her seat, the laptop's screen blocking her from view. She pressed her burning face into her palms in an attempt to reduce the blush that had flared there.

Much to Ryuko's chagrin, the woman came and sat in the seat next to her. Ryuko nearly raised her foot onto the chair in protest but bit back the action in favor of riding out the rest of the awkward encounter. To do so, she plugged her headphones into the auxiliary port on her laptop and cranked the sound up on the game she had been enjoying before Mako had interrupted her. Ryuko shrunk herself further, turning her laptop more towards the corner she inhabited so the woman that sat next to her couldn't see what she was doing. With that, she began ignoring the situation at hand along with the lecture on the syllabus the professor was giving.

It was easier said than done, though. Ryuko found herself, against her own wishes, glancing up at random intervals during her gameplay to ogle the visage of the other woman. She couldn't quite get over how the woman's face seemed an utter thing of perfection, even with the rather intimidating amount of eyebrow she was endowed with. It was when the woman tucked a piece of her bangs behind her ear with intense finesse that Ryuko grit her teeth so hard she swore the entire room heard it.

 _Pull yourself together, Matoi! That woman is way out of your league, you trash heap!_

Her internal belittling served its purpose and Ryuko felt herself calm down a bit. Unfortunately for her, it was wrecked by the woman looking up and catching her gaze again as the class ended. This time, she quirked the side of her mouth up at Ryuko and motioned with her hand for Ryuko to take one of her earphones out. For once in her life, Ryuko listened to a stranger and did as she was told. _Anything for a pretty lady._

"How long have you been playing?" the deep baritone of the woman's voice shocked Ryuko almost more than the question itself.

"Uh- wha?" leaning forward, Ryuko took her other earphone out so she could hear.

"The game you're playing. How long have you been playing it?" the woman extended an inquisitive index finger out towards Ryuko's laptop. Ryuko leaned past it, her nose a little close for comfort to the other woman, and glanced back, making sure that her screen had been hidden the entire time. It had been.

"Wh…" Ryuko paused, her palm smoothing over the metallic finish of her laptops cover, closing it before continuing. "What are you talking about?"

The woman waited for Ryuko to sink back into her seat before addressing her again. "I could hear the music and sounds." Fixating her with a chilling gleam in her eye, the woman crossed her right leg over her left at the knee. "It's rather new. Have you been playing it since it came out?"

Panic was starting to set in for Ryuko. Someone had found out and, even worse, it had been the prettiest woman in the whole goddamn university to do so. She glanced around the room, marking where the exits were; formulating an escape. To her dismay, the only route that was open was the window beside her. She contemplated the three story drop- her fingers twitching as she eyeballed the safety latch.

As if picking up on Ryuko's sudden need to learn how to fly, the other woman let out a breath through her nose. It sounded like something between an exhale and an amused snort. "Here." The woman leaned forward, scribbling on to the pad of paper in front of her and ripping it from the page. Instead of handing it to Ryuko, the woman slid it along the table until it was resting in front of where she was seated. "It's my account name."

She retracted her slender fingers just as slowly. Ryuko swallowed hard, reaching out and pinching the piece of paper and bringing it to her face. The cursive handwriting read: skiryuin.

Once she had completed the action, the woman stood from her seat and turned to leave. She paused before she did, though, a look of recollection crossing her face before she turned back to Ryuko. The faint smile on her lips from before had disappeared.

"What's your name?" Ryuko started a little, shifting uncomfortably before standing as well and extending her hand to where the other woman stood.

"Matoi Ryuko." The other woman eyed her hand with immeasurable scrutiny. She never made even the slightest move to reciprocate Ryuko's handshake. "And you?"

"Kiryuin Satsuki. Address me as Kiryuin from now on." With that, Ryuko watched as Satsuki turned on her heel and left without another word.

"Ooooh? But I thought you said you had a friend in that class?" Mako's inquisitive voice was barely audible over the crackling of oil. Ryuko nudged a few of the breaded delicacies around in the pan so that they'd cook evenly.

"Eh. I thought I did? But man, it's been like. A whole fuckin' week and she hasn't even sat next to me again." Ryuko scratched at the nape of her neck while leaning against the counter behind her.

"I thought you mentioned she gave you her phone number?" Ryuko's ears burned a little at being reminded of the white lie she had told Mako a few days prior.

"Heeeh. Yea. She did. But uh…" Mako had moved into the kitchen to rummage through the refrigerator. Ryuko grimaced and pretended to pick at the edge of her chin. "I sorta- well. I lost it."

A loud thump emanated from the fridge, swiftly followed with a pain-tinged, "Whaaaat?!"

"Look. She gave it to me on a piece of paper, like we were back in middle-school or somethin'." Mako finally pulled herself from the gaping maw of the fridge, her arms crowded with various meat and cheese snacks.

"Why haven't you asked her for it again then?"

"Would you ask the hottest person you had ever seen for their number again after losing it?"

"Uh. Yea. Fuck yea, I would!" Mako emphasized her careful wording with abrupt nods of her head, nearly dislodging some of the snacks from her grip.

Ryuko sighed and moved back to the stove, removing the mystery fried food from the oil and onto a paper towel. "You don't get it Mako."

"What don't I get? She's a babe. You've got a thing for babes!" Once Mako had deposited her food stuffs onto the dining room table she turned back to where she could see Ryuko through the narrow window into the kitchen. "You plus a babe usually equals a good time! Just ask her for her number again! If it makes your life any easier you can tell her that I, like, ate it or something!"

She couldn't help but grin at Mako's silliness. There was an obvious weight lifted from her chest at the little they had talked about her babe issue. That wasn't going to stop Ryuko from inciting a playful argument regardless. She gathered her plate and moved to the dining area as well. "Mako. I just don't think you get it. You've never seen her in person. She's got these eyebrows like someone took two of those ultra-furry caterpillars and superglued 'em to her face."

Choking noises echoed throughout the space as Mako inhaled her food in preparation for laughing. Ryuko patted her back until she had regained her composure.

"Not only that, but she has this habit of making you feel like you're an inch tall. Like, the second lecture she came in and when she saw me on my laptop all she said was," at this point in her bantering, Ryuko straightened her back and looked down her nose at Mako. She put on a slight frown and pressed her eyebrows together before continuing, " _If you are going to be on your laptop during lectures, Matoi, I will have to sit in front of you from now on._ "

This time, Mako was able to laugh to her content. Ryuko sat down in triumph, biting into her fully-cooked freezer food. Once she had wiped the tears from her face and calmed herself, Mako responded. "Aaah, she sounds just like your kind of gal, Ryuko."

"Whaa?" Ryuko questioned around a mouthful of food.

"Seriously! You love girls like that. All dominant and unerring. Also intimidating!" At this, Mako had begun to hold up her palms, listing off those very traits in previous love interests of Ryuko's. At about three girls in, Ryuko pushed out of her chair, her plate in hand.

"I'm done hearing about this, Mako. I'm going to my room." With faux hurt, Ryuko turned and left the table. All of Mako's cries were met with a swift "flipping-of-the-bird" on Ryuko's part before she kicked her way into her room.

Ryuko flopped on to her bed with exquisite skill that showed in how she managed to keep her food from flying across the sheets all while propping open her laptop. Losing her t-shirt and pants, Ryuko sprawled out in comfort, her back against the wall at the head of her mattress.

"Finally, some peace and quiet." She shoved another piece of deep-fried mystery into her mouth before loading the game she had been playing when she met Kiryuin Satsuki.

 _Ah, Satsuki._ Ryuko mused silently to herself as she typed in her username and password then waited for the game to load.

It would have been a lie to say that she didn't remember Satsuki's account name. Ryuko was frequently aware of how much of an idiot she could be at times but she certainly didn't have a bad memory. Yet, she still hadn't added Satsuki in-game. There was still a barrier there that Ryuko was unwilling to cross. That, and she knew that if she did add Satsuki, they'd potentially end up sitting together again during class. Something that, while Ryuko wouldn't have minded the opportunity to get closer to the rather unapproachable beauty, was still unwilling to sacrifice her fun for. That specific fun in question being her ability to sneak glances at Satsuki's rump, or more lamely titled in her mind as: "The Kiryuin Ass-of-The-Day".

 _Pant-suits._ Ryuko nodded snobbishly as she crowded her laptop against her chest. _Pant-suit days are definitely my favorite days._ She snapped out of her reverie as the character screen came up for her game and she double-tapped into the action.

The game in particular had been out for a couple of months. Ryuko had picked up the scent of it off a forum that she often lurked for kicks. It was all the hype after a week or so of launch time. There was a rumor that the gaming studio that had developed it was a small team. Brand new to the scene with the massively multiplayer online game that they had pushed into internet fame. It was their first creation to be seen by the scrutinizing eye of the public.

Ryuko was unfortunately starting to get bored of it. She had capped her character out at the maximum level almost a week and a half ago. All that was left was experiencing some of the player-killing aspects of the game design and she would be thoroughly worn out with the thing. It hadn't helped that the leveling system had her in tears of exasperation and when she did finally cap she used the next dormitory party as a means of celebration; both drinking in merriment and the need to erase the memory of the pain.

"Wha?" Ryuko leaned forward a few inches, her nose nearly coming in contact with her laptops screen. Her interest had been piqued by a character near her.

There was something off about the naming conventions used in the bright red text hovering over their avatar. As soon as she noticed what it was exactly, the global chat broke out into hysterics. It took her everything she had to keep up with the text that was scrolling across her screen.

 **regg21:** GM at gate

 **teeterz:** PK?

 **regg21:** Nice rack GM

 **balooga66666:** LF DPS 4 BWRT

 **[GM]Castitate:** (regg21 has been DELETED by [GM]Castitate)

 **teeterz:** WTF

Ryuko made a look at her screen that was something between disgust and horror. The game master had gone so far as to delete a player's character just for commenting on their virtual tits?

 _No. No way. That isn't gonna fly._

She approached the GM's character and decided to take matters into her own hands.

 **senketsu:** oy GM!

 **private[GM]Castitate:** Is there a matter I might address for you?

 **senketsu:** yea u could undelete the character u jus got rid of

 **private[GM]Castitate:** Unfortunately, there is no way to undo that action.

Ryuko grit her teeth and growled at her laptop.

 **senketsu:** then im going to kill u as many times as it takes to make it up

There was a pause in their chat. Ryuko cursed the impracticality of the chat box for her not being able to filter out the private chat logs from the world chat.

 **private[GM]Castitate:** How about a bet?

She paused a moment before typing back. A brief flash of online chat rooms as a teenager and nude picture requests floated through her mind. Ryuko shook the thoughts from her mind both literally and figuratively.

 **senketsu:** fine! what is it?

 **private[GM]Castitate:** If you win in a duel with me, I will delete my character as compensation for the other player. If you lose, I will delete your character for wasting my time.

A lump formed in Ryuko's throat at that. Delete her character? After all the time she had put into it to get where she was? She debated the philosophical morals of the situation at hand, wondering if her character was worth the loss of another person's.

As if a fire had been started in her heart, she steeled herself in her decision. If that person had worked half as hard as she had to achieve something in that game, it would be worth it to have this game master taken down a couple pegs.

 **senketsu:** lets do this then!

 **private[GM]Castitate:** As you wish.

The countdown started immediately after the GM's reply. Three seconds to get ready. Two seconds to crack her knuckles. One second to set her hands setup on her keyboard and mouse...

As soon as the match between them started, Ryuko was at the game masters' throat. She made sure to pace herself through her abilities, never draining her stamina completely and making sure to evenly distribute the potions in her inventory between their cooldowns

 _Easy!_ She smirked to herself, watching the health bar for the GM crawl down bit by painstaking bit. So long as she didn't lose her cool and continued to use her skills, she would win for certain.

It was five whole minutes in that Ryuko started to notice that she was panting. The fight was taking a toll on her. Her palms were starting to slick with sweat and she had to lick at the salty condensation gathering on her upper lip to keep it from tickling her nose. She could swear that for all the adrenaline pumping activities she had done in her life, that one topped the charts. Stealing and bar brawls be damned. That was true excitement.

The game masters' health bar was so close to being empty. There was hardly a sliver left and Ryuko was grinning like an idiot at the prospect that she had toppled an almost literal giant- in gaming terms, at least. It was around the time that she was about to raise her fist in a victory pump that her finger missed her potion hotkey, instead popping a different ability and leaving her completely vulnerable. She was left gaping as the last third of her health bar instantly disappeared.

 **[GM]Castitate:** (senketsu has been DELETED by [GM]Castitate)

"Are you alright, Matoi?"

Ryuko groaned into her backpack. She hadn't even bothered to take her laptop out despite the fact the lecture had started.

Satsuki was looking at her, concerned. If you could call the odd U-shape of her brow and the slight twitch of her lips a concerned look. It was the first time that she had talked to Ryuko since their first meeting and even that act was wasted on Ryuko's poor mood. She glanced down at Satsuki's lower half.

"Pant-suit. Niiiiiiice." She muttered half-heartedly before turning her face down into the rough polymer fabric of her backpack and groaning for about ten seconds without a pause.

"Matoi. Are you ill?" the question was less worried as it was demanding. Ryuko decided that flashing Satsuki her middle finger was the best decision in that moment. "A proper reaction from a child, I suppose."

Growling low, Ryuko raised herself from her seat and pointed harshly at Satsuki. "Don't fucking patronize me, Kiryuin!"

The whole room went silent. Ryuko could swear her voice echoed in the space. She mentally damned the architect who manufactured the shoddy acoustics before sitting back into her chair. Satsuki turned around nonchalantly and readied her pen at her memo pad. The lecture continued.

It was a tragic day in her life when even the attention of a fine woman couldn't pull her from her funk. Ryuko would have fallen asleep immediately if it hadn't been for the disposition she was in. She still couldn't believe what had happened the night before. One tiny mistake, that's all it took, and all of her hard work had been thrown out the window. Sayonara. Good bye. Never to be seen again.

 _Gaaah. And she was just trying to be nice. I shouldn't have snapped at her like that._

So for the rest of the lecture, Ryuko bordered a line of reasoning. A topic that was split between ignoring the caring sentiment that she got from Satsuki earlier or engaging it. Pretending the game didn't exist or admitting that she fancied it. By the time the professor had stopped talking and released them from the class, she had made up her mind.

Removing the eraser from her mechanical pencil, she pinched it between her index finger and thumb. Ryuko took careful aim before flicking it in Satsuki's direction. The eraser shot out at an incredible speed and collided with Satsuki's temple with an audible _punk_.

The aura that overtook Ryuko was unfathomable in breadth. Shadowy and menacing. Satsuki didn't move but Ryuko could tell that she had done it. She'd pissed off the wrong person. That was how she was going to die and she resigned herself to it on the spot.

Much to her bewilderment, though, Satsuki merely turned to her. Her features set into a glower that Ryuko could swear was impossible for the muscles in a human face to make. Even the oppressive air that had wafted off Satsuki a moment ago was promptly retreating. Ryuko leaned back, her fingers laced against the back of her head.

"Look. Kiryuin. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap at you like I did earlier." She let the words out on a monstrous sigh. She hoped the heat on her face was just remnants from being squished against her forearms. "I had a rough night. Shouldn't've taken it out on you."

Ryuko closed her eyes and only peeked one open when Satsuki never responded. She figured that Satsuki had left but was surprised to find that she was still there. Her grimace set a little softer into the stone-like features of her face. "You should learn to control yourself better, Matoi."

"Hrrmm…" Ryuko bit back on a snide remark, figuring that the damage she had caused was enough for the day. "Yea, yea."

"What, exactly, caused your night to be so terrible?" Satsuki placed her portfolio next to Ryuko's backpack before resting her hands in a neat pile on top of it.

"Ah, well." Leaning forward, Ryuko cleared her throat into her hand as she decided whether to lie her way out of the situation or not. "You know that game I was playing?"

"Yes."

"Well, it has to do with that."

"If you prefer, I could leave and let you stew in your misery." Ryuko watched Satsuki glance at the watch on her wrist, her patience evidently waning.

"Ok. Look. It's just hard to talk about this stuff."

Satsuki moved as if to pick up her things and leave. Ryuko nearly jumped from her seat to stop her.

"Wait! Ok, ok! My character got deleted by some asshole GM." She watched as an invisible question mark graced Satsuki's glare. Ryuko grabbed at the red streak in her hair, a little nervous at the conversation topic. "Yea, I know, right?"

"What did you do to get deleted?" with a groan, Ryuko dropped her head onto the table. The subsequent noise managed to startle everyone that was left in the room besides Satsuki and herself. Ryuko decided a moment later that she was going to have an impressive goose egg to match the stupidity of her action.

"I dueled them over some other person getting deleted. And I lost so they deleted my character. I'm just pissed that all that time and work I put into it was wasted."

There was as few minutes of complete silence. Ryuko was certain that Satsuki had actually left until she heard her let out a strained sigh. "Do you have any further obligations tonight?"

"Err, no?" Ryuko's face turned up in confusion at the question.

"Would you like to join me at my home tonight, then?" Ryuko's bemusement only deepened at the invitation. The burning sensation on her face was starting to become a nuisance.

"Ah- uh-" she flapped her arms at the elbow, attempting to communicate her question through nonverbal means. Satsuki rolled her eyes.

"I have some characters to level. If you want, we can work together. It will go faster that way."

Ryuko nodded furiously, too bewildered to form any words. She knew her tongue would betray her if she tried.

"Alright then. Follow me, Matoi."

"Er. This is where you live?" Ryuko muttered as she entered a narrow hallway. Satsuki reached out and flicked on a light, illuminating the area around them.

"I prefer smaller living spaces. Especially since I live here alone." Her tone was matter-of-fact and Ryuko grunted curtly in response.

Though it was rather on the cramped side, Ryuko had to admit it was more space than what she had in her dormitory room. The hallway led past a small kitchenette before opening into a comfortable living space. The furniture was on the modern end with a leather couch against the wall opposite a flat screen television and a low coffee table separating the two. Next to that, there was a modest dining area with a square table and four matching chairs. All in all, Ryuko couldn't help but think it fit Satsuki. Plain, simple, practical. It was like she had managed to dress the space in a figurative pant-suit.

"Truthfully, the selling point on this place was the bathroom." Satsuki's voice drifted down another hallway and Ryuko leaned around the corner to glimpse her taking off her dress shoes and dress jacket. She laid the jacket on the bed before turning around. Upon noticing Ryuko's prying eyes she pulled another frigid frown. "Sit down, Matoi."

Ryuko felt her face flush as she mechanically maneuvered to the couch and planted herself firmly on it. Dropping her backpack between her feet, she covered her face and rolled side to side in an attempt to make her sudden embarrassment disappear. After sating the urge to curl in on herself, she set up her laptop on the coffee table. While looking around for a power outlet to plug in her charger, Satsuki walked briskly into the room, seemingly ignoring her.

"There's a power outlet by the window. Should be sufficient space between the couch and the wall to get the cord in." Leaning over the arm of the couch, Ryuko jammed the plug into the wall socket.

Ryuko could hear Satsuki rummaging through the refrigerator and cabinets in the kitchen as she turned on her laptop. She felt the couch dip beside her and looked over to see Satsuki with a beer in one hand and a glass of red wine in the other. She scooted a coaster beside Ryuko's laptop before setting the beer on top of it.

"You are old enough to drink, yes?" Satsuki quirked an eyebrow at her and Ryuko had to clear her throat, certain that her heart was attempting to crawl up her throat.

"Ah, yea. Thanks." She picked up the bottle and sipped gingerly at it, knowing that if she took a huge gulp she'd likely regret it.

Ryuko managed to steal a few glances at Satsuki as she leaned across the other end of the couch and grabbed her laptop off an end table. She was still in the button down shirt she had worn under her dress jacket, the first couple of buttons were undone and the hem had been pulled out from her pants. The breath hitched in Ryuko's throat when she glanced a ripple of definition across the plane of Satsuki's midriff. Figuring that it was best not to entertain her already throbbing desires, Ryuko turned back to her laptop, placing the beer bottle purposefully between her thighs.

"Do you mind if I turn on the TV?"

Ryuko shook her head, keeping her eyes on her laptop screen as she launched the game and settled back into her seat. The material of her jacket and the couch squeaked uncomfortably. Satsuki turned the television on and navigated to a news channel before doing the same as Ryuko and leaning back with her laptop cradled on her knees.

They sat in relative silence for a while as they set up their respective games, getting comfortable and making enough room for their mice and body parts. Ryuko moved to put her feet up on the coffee table but was stopped short by Satsuki's voice. "No feet on the coffee table, Matoi."

Ryuko rolled her eyes and put her feet back on the ground. "Jesus Kiryuin, you're so fuckin-"

"Are you certain you want to finish that sentence?" the stark-blue gaze that Satsuki pinned Ryuko with was enough to stop her mid-sentence regardless of what she wanted. After a few moments, Satsuki's eyes went back to her laptop. Ryuko let out a strained breath.

"Geez, that'd give a lesser person a heart attack." Ryuko finished building her new character and mumbled the information to Satsuki, masking what she had said. She could hear Satsuki let out a sharp snort.

"Are you trying to insinuate that you aren't a lesser person?" Ryuko guffawed.

"Was that a fuckin' joke, Kiryuin?"

"Absolutely not." Satsuki punctuated her stern reply by sipping delicately from her wine glass. Ryuko let out a few stray chuckles before turning back to her laptop, aware that her character had engaged in combat on accident. She could've sworn she saw a smirk hidden behind the crimson-hue of the wine.

After that, they turned their attention to the game and played. It was a bizarre experience for Ryuko, what with her never having any friends to really indulge in the act of cooperative gameplay. Though she wasn't sure if she could call Satsuki a friend, especially after their recent encounter. It was biting at the back of her mind, like an itch that she couldn't reach, and all she was certain of was that while Satsuki may have had her looks going for her, her attitude was less than desirable. She knew she'd someday regret ignoring the smoke for the fire that it likely was.

A few hours passed and Ryuko and Satsuki had managed to get her new character leveled a substantial way. It did relieve her that the leveling did seem to be going quickly, even if it still managed to be dirt slow. The news on the television had made for nice background noise, as well. She was relieved to find when she glanced up that they had moved on from the morbid topics that they displayed earlier on to the more digestible content as the segment wound-down.

They were discussing the boom in textile creations, primarily that of the REVOCS Corporation and how it had begun to reshape the clothing industry as a whole. Ryuko made to return her attention back to her game but was interrupted by a sharp _tch_ from Satsuki. Looking back up, Ryuko noticed the disgusted sound had been prompted by them displaying a picture of the woman who ran the REVOCS Corporation: Nui Harime.

The air around Satsuki shifted to a foreboding malice and Ryuko spoke as a means to cut through it. "She's always creeped me out." Ryuko jutted her chin out towards the TV in emphasis. "See her nasty face on billboards and commercials all the time."

"Creepy is an understatement. You never had to live with her." Ryuko hesitated at Satsuki's words. She turned her gaze slowly to observe the way Satsuki's eyes were angled harshly at the image of Nui on the screen. It was impossible to tell if the emotion that lurked behind her sapphire irises was that of disgust or distress.

"You…" the gears in Ryuko's brain were clogged from their gaming. "So wait. You lived with that lizard-creature?"

"Mmmhm." Satsuki hummed her response.

"So wait. How? Is she your sister?" Ryuko's brow was furled to the point of painful. The dots weren't connecting right.

"Half-sister." Satsuki's eyes were still glued to the television and Ryuko leaned forward, grabbing the remote and turning it off. The spell that had taken hold of Satsuki vanished and she blinked once before turning to look at Ryuko thoughtfully.

"So you're telling me that your half-sister owns one of the largest clothing corporations in the world?"

"Technically."

"No, Kiryuin. No one word fucking answers." The brazen tone in Ryuko's voice seemed to catch Satsuki off-guard, causing one of her eyebrows to twitch.

"Fine." Satsuki moved her laptop to the coffee table before turning back to Ryuko, her demeanor reset to its usual uncaring self. "You get three questions before I kick you out. What is it you want to know?"

"What did you mean by technically? Nui owns REVOCS, doesn't she?" Satsuki nodded her head thoughtfully.

"She controls it, yes. It was her desire to take over it after our mothers passing. I declined the offer and it became her prerogative." Satsuki leaned to the side to grab her wine glass and swirled the liquid absentmindedly while Ryuko worked on another pointed question to ask. Satsuki raised two fingers, showing Ryuko how many questions she had left.

"Why did you decline taking over REVOCS?"

"Someone with aspirations such as mine doesn't choose to use established frameworks as a means for success. I wanted to find my own path." There was a pause as she sipped at her wine. "And I could care less for fashion." Satsuki lowered another finger, leaving her with just a slender index finger extended towards the ceiling.

Ryuko tilted her head, grimacing in understanding at the answer. She groaned, trying to think of a proper third question and coming up with far too many that needed answering. "Are you really going to kick me out?"

Satsuki questioned her playfully with an eyebrow before glancing at her wrist watch.

"Is that a yes?"

"You're out of questions, Matoi. Not to mention it's late and I have to be up early for work." Satsuki stood from the couch and collected the empty beer bottle from the coffee table along with her wine glass.

Ryuko sighed her disappointment, collecting her laptop and charger and depositing them into her backpack. She moved to the door, making it apparent in her stride that she was less than enthused about having to leave in the middle of their conversation. Satsuki seemed to notice and brushed past her to unlock the door and swing it open. Ryuko stood in the hallway outside Satsuki's home a moment, turning back around to find that Satsuki still hadn't retreated into her abode.

"Do you have plans tomorrow around six?"

Ryuko shook her head, still showing her disdain by sullenly lumbering from foot to foot.

"Good. Then come by at six. Bring your laptop." The door began to shut before stopping abruptly, causing Ryuko to pause mid-turn. "I'll answer more of your questions tomorrow, Matoi. Try to be more prepared."

They shared a mutual nod before parting ways for the night. Ryuko turned up the collar of her leather jacket when she stepped outside the apartment building, puffing faint clouds into the darkness. A smile traced her lips for the rest of her walk home.

"So where were we yesterday?" another beer, another wine glass, and another awkward jumble of movements as Ryuko and Satsuki sunk into their respective places on the couch.

"Well…" Ryuko started, mentioning a few things about what they were attempting to accomplish in-game before continuing on with what she truly wanted to discuss. "And then we were discussing how you're probably fuckin' loaded and you've got that Nui Harime as a creepy half-sister."

"And I mentioned that creepy hardly cut it, correct?" they shared a brief moment of silent laughter before Satsuki cooled, her demeanor a bit less approachable than the night before. Ryuko wondered what was on her mind but decided it best to leave it be.

"So, if your mum is no longer around, what about your dad?" Ryuko turned her eyes back to her laptop screen. She downplayed the question, her attention faux focused on the game, wanting Satsuki to feel comfortable enough to respond.

"He's also no longer." All Ryuko responded with was a couple of understanding nods. "Car crash. Both of them died instantly."

"Rough. My dad passed when I was young too. House fire." She could hear Satsuki sipping her wine.

"Mmm, no 'I'm sorry' or 'that must have been tough'? Just 'rough'?" Ryuko shrugged, looking over at Satsuki and splaying her fingers out on the air between them to emphasize her words.

"Look, Kiryuin, I know exactly what it's like to have a family member die. I also know that after years of it happening, hearing sentimental sympathy like that just starts to get annoying." She pointed her index finger at Satsuki. "You don't strike me as the overly emotional type. Figured you'd rather I just get our conversation movin'. 'Cause, in all fairness, this shit's a little heavy."

The arched eyebrow reply was all Ryuko needed to know that Satsuki agreed completely. They both turned their attention back to their laptops, the silence more comfortable.

"How was work?" the question had nearly been forgotten after their prior topic.

"Matoi. Please don't start talking to me like I'm your wife." Ryuko nearly spit the beer she had in her mouth. It felt like she had swallowed her own foot when she finally managed to choke it down.

"Oy! Don't be an ass, I'm just trying to be courteous."

"Don't. It's bizarre coming from you."

Ryuko rolled her eyes so hard she swore she saw stars. "Fuckin' shit, and to think I thought I could actually get along with you."

"You thought that? Rather naive even for you, Matoi." She extended a threatening pointer finger at Satsuki.

"Should stop while you're ahead, Kiryuin." _Those fuckin' eyebrows are starting to piss me off_ , Ryuko thought to herself, dangerously close to throttling Satsuki.

"Why not try, Matoi." Every word was coated in venom. The calm look on Satsuki's face betrayed the tension that was underlying the situation. Ryuko hated to admit that she was terrified. It was like waiting for the jump scare in a horror film. She could sense how dangerous Satsuki was, even if the way she currently acted was working to negate it. Narrowing her eyes, Ryuko sat back, her hands resting rigidly on her keyboard.

"One of these days, Kiryuin." Despite herself, the rage that had been coursing through her seconds before was beginning to dissipate.

"I'll be waiting for that day." Even the condescending tone in Satsuki's voice didn't stoke the fire in Ryuko's gut. She was starting to wonder if there was something wrong with her. Any other person would have been on the receiving end of a few swift punches for just looking at her the wrong way.

Instead of thinking on it, Ryuko focused on her game. That was what games were for, after all. A tool used in helping to ignore important obligations or troubling thoughts. Satsuki turned the television on, choosing to leave some sitcoms on instead of the news. They communicated for the next three hours in a series of grunts and one-word answers.

"Where do you work? You're always dressed snazzy so I figure it's, like, a law firm or something." The shows had started to wear on Ryuko's patience and their character leveling was starting to get redundant.

"I manage a team." Shaking her head, Ryuko scowled at Satsuki.

"That's really informative." Her sarcastic comment caught Satsuki's attention. "You're the queen of being vague, yah know that?"

"I don't have to tell you anything." The lack of emotion in Satsuki's eyes was starting to freak Ryuko out. She chalked it up to fatigue from staring at a screen for nearly four hours. "Honestly, I manage a project team. It's not entirely exciting."

"Oh. Figured you'd be loaded, truthfully. With a company like REVOCS in your family…"

"No. Like I said the other day, I wanted to choose my own path, and that included making my own money."

"Huh." Ryuko couldn't say she was surprised. Satsuki seemed the type to be completely independent. She found herself envying the trait before remembering Mako and the time she had spent with her family. "Sounds lonely."

"What?"

"It just sounds lonely. When my pops died, I was on the streets for a while. Paperwork never went the way I needed it to and I ended up having to scavenge for a couple of months until I lucked out and my buddy, Mako, and her family took me in." Ryuko leaned forward, attempting to comfort the unease she felt in her chest. "Living with the Mankanshoku's was like getting the family I never really had. It would have been lonely, otherwise."

Satsuki just hummed in response. Ryuko rolled her eyes, rubbing her neck to ease the ache of sitting for so long.

"Well, I'm going to head home." She began to pack up her laptop and charger, figuring that the fun had been sucked out of about everything for the night. If what they had done for most of the evening could even be called fun. Satsuki continued to sit with her eyes focused on her game as Ryuko moved to the front door and began to let herself out.

"Matoi."

Her name being called made her pause. Ryuko turned to look at Satsuki, who was still staring at her laptop screen.

"You shouldn't assume. Especially when it comes to me."

Ryuko ground her teeth together while closing the door and stomping out of the building. Her walk home that night was spent muttering profanities and kicking every stray pebble that managed to get in her way.

A month had passed. An entire month of leveling during nights as Satsuki's apartment. An entire month of seething passive aggression and pointed comments. An entire month of Ryuko wanting to pull her hair out in rage at the many, many, idiosyncrasies that Satsuki seemed to be blessed with.

Things had started to spiral out of control between them. It was a mixture of a few volatile components including, but not limited to, their disparate personalities, gaming styles, and study habits. The last of which had struck Ryuko as completely baffling the first time she had witnessed Satsuki multi-tasking. Writing an essay on her laptop while running Ryuko's character through a difficult area on her desktop computer. After Ryuko's concerned statement about her being able to concentrate on both, Satsuki was sure to show her the perfect score she received on the essay later that week.

It hardly stopped there, either. Satsuki frequently left her online lectures and review videos playing in the background on her living room television as they pressed through mindless grinding to get to their next levels.

" _How many classes are you even taking?" Ryuko had remarked after noticing the list of classes on Satsuki's student account website._

" _This semester is only twenty-four credits."_

" _Only?!"_

" _I took thirty-two last semester." Ryuko stammered, her mouth running far ahead of her words. Satsuki had reached out and slapped her. The action subdued Ryuko effectively._

" _How?! I thought they capped credit hours at twenty-four and that's for people who really beg for it!"_

" _I swear Matoi, if you continue to yell I will throw you out."_

 _Ryuko clamped her mouth shut. She knew Satsuki's threat was genuine._

" _I happen to have friends in high places at this university. Which is why I chose to attend here instead of somewhere else. To graduate in four years with the majors I wanted, it was necessary to overload my schedule."_

" _How many majors do you even have?"_

" _Four. Not counting some minor certificates I added for accounting."_

" _WHAT?!"_

 _Ryuko barely had any sense left in her mind to realize she had been physically tossed out of the front door along with her backpack until a good five minutes had passed._

"Matoi!" the boom of Satsuki's voice brought Ryuko out of her daydream just in time to realize that she had managed to get their entire group killed during a boss battle.

"Fuck!" Ryuko stood from the couch and nearly flung her laptop across the room. Instead, she opted for setting it down on the table as dramatically as she could. This had been the fifth time they'd wiped.

"I told you to wait until after the boss finished to use your healing ability!" Satsuki stood as well, her pointer finger angled threateningly at Ryuko's chest.

"Hey! Fuck you! It's not my fault we kept dying earlier!"

If someone had been there to witness the events that unfolded next, they could have blinked and missed it. Ryuko was aware after the fact that her first mistake had been reaching out towards Satsuki's shoulder. It gave her the ability to grab Ryuko's wrist and forearm, a tactical advantage in any fight where momentum is important. The second mistake Ryuko had made was stepping towards her. Satsuki had stepped into the space between legs and braced her hip against Ryuko's groin before she could even begin to move away. The third mistake that Ryuko made was not bracing herself for the impact that would come when she was flipped over Satsuki's shoulder and laid out on her back on the floor. The sheer force of the collision managed to wind Ryuko to the point where she was coughing in ragged fits.

The only thing that managed to quell Ryuko's hacking was the weight that settled on her breast. When she managed to open her eyes and look up, she was greeted with the sight of Satsuki standing over her, her foot planted firmly on Ryuko.

"I hope you regret that action." Satsuki's words were meant to be menacing but Ryuko was too preoccupied with the view that only being floor-level could grant with a skirt.

"The only thing I regret right now is how turned on I am." She was greeted with a swift stomp to the chest which commenced her whooping fits again.

"Matoi. You are possibly the most sickening person I have ever met." Satsuki promptly resumed sitting on the couch, making sure to cross her legs for good measure. Ryuko rolled onto her side in an attempt to keep herself from heaving up her dinner.

"Fuckin' hell, Kiryuin! Where did you even learn how to do that?" managing to get on all fours, Ryuko shimmed herself around the coffee table- not wanting to receive another kick from Satsuki- before dragging herself back into her spot on the couch.

"I've been trained in multiple forms of martial arts since I was able to walk." Satsuki had returned to her laptop, typing an excuse into the chat box for their brief absence.

"How am I not surprised?" Ryuko rubbed her chest tenderly before pulling her laptop towards her. There was a moment of silence as they settled down. Ryuko was oddly aware of how arduous her heart was thumping. Satsuki didn't even seem to have broken a sweat from the encounter.

"You should just tell your friend." The statement was so cryptic and out of the blue that Ryuko thought about ignoring it.

"What are you even talking about, Kiryuin? You're doing that obnoxious thing where you blurt out something that only you understand." They started to ready themselves for the sixth attempt at the boss.

"You should tell Mankanshoku about your gaming habit. She probably has the wrong idea about where you've been four out of seven nights of the week." There was a pause as both of them got swept up into the action in their game. "Honestly, Matoi, she probably knows about your playing. You happen to be a terrible liar, after all."

"What? I am not."

"If my utmost attention wasn't necessary right now for this game, I would stare you down the way that you pretend doesn't frighten you."

"So you _do_ do that on purpose. You're such a saucy fuckin' minx, Kiryuin."

"Matoi. Shut your mouth or I will shut it permanently."

"Yea, yea."

Ryuko wasn't certain what was normal between them anymore, but the calming air that had set in managed to focus her attention. They cleared the boss that time; no hiccups or mistakes. She braced herself for the berating that she was going to receive from Satsuki for not accomplishing it the six times before.

Instead, Satsuki merely exited the game after congratulating their group and closed her laptop.

"Good job, Matoi." She stood from her spot and tilted her head side to side, meticulously cracking her neck. "Now go home and speak with Mankanshoku. Also, I suggest studying. Our class's midterm exam is coming up next week."

With that, Satsuki made her way to the front door and opened it, letting Ryuko slip past her and into the hallway.

"Good night, Matoi."

Satsuki closed the door with a soft _shhthtk_ before Ryuko could respond. She spent an uncomfortable amount of time staring at the burnt-orange paint on the door. It was fixating in a way that left her clouded and vulnerable. She lifted her fingers and ran them across a scar in the wood that had been painted over. When the trance broke and Ryuko managed to leave, she spent her walk trying to forget the way the gash felt against her fingertips.

It was like a backwards intervention.

Mako was sitting opposite Ryuko on the small space of Ryuko's bed. By the way that Mako was glancing about, her bobbed haircut following in response, Ryuko could tell that she was nervous. It hadn't helped that Satsuki's enigmatic nature had seemed to rub off on her. She was starting to think that she shouldn't have stated her desire to talk in terms of, 'We need to talk about something important'.

"Oh my gosh Ryuko the suspense is killing me! Are you pregnant or what?!"

The question caused Ryuko to be physically taken aback. She recoiled with a baffled grimace on her face. "Wha- No!"

"Oh dear lord that is such a relief!"

"How- why would I be pregnant?! Why is that the first thing you thought of?!"

"I don't know! I'm stressed out! When I'm stressed out you know I don't think right!"

They paused a moment, digesting the previous moment in their own ways.

"Ok, can you just tell me what's going on before I start assuming again?" there was a certain amount of pleading in Mako's eyes that had Ryuko's stomach doing backflips. She hadn't meant to worry her friend.

"Look. I need to be honest with you, Mako." She leaned across the space between them and took Mako's hands in her own. They were clammy but Ryuko pushed through the unpleasant sensation. She noticed a light blush starting to settle across Mako's cheeks.

"Oh man, Ryuko. Are you confessing to me?" Ryuko blinked a few times before fully understanding the implications of Mako's question.

"Huh? No! Fuck, Mako, no!"

"Oh thank god! I did not need my first confession to be from you!" Ryuko hung her head and groaned.

"I'm starting to see why Satsuki has a hard time putting up with me. This shit is exhausting…" she whispered.

"What was that about Satsuki? That's that girl you've got a thing for, right?" Mako's hearing managed work for a brief moment to catch Ryuko's words.

"Ugh. No, I don't have a crush on her. Actually, I could really care less for her. Been spending way too much time gaming with her lately. Starting to wear on my nerves."

There was another pause in their conversation as Ryuko realized what she had said. She meticulously studied the look on Mako's face. It seemed like nothing had changed, Mako was still smiling like a sunflower.

"Errh, that's kind of what I wanted to talk about Mako."

"What? That you've been spending time with that Satsuki girl? I already knew about that!"

"No, no! About the fact that I- that I-!" Ryuko couldn't seem to force the words out.

"Huh? Do you mean about you playing video games? I already knew about that too, dummy!"

It took Ryuko the better part of a minute to comprehend what Mako had said fully. "You… you did?"

"No shit, Ryuko! I've known for a long time! Doesn't help that you're a terrible liar."

"Ugh, am I really that bad of a liar?" Ryuko shook her head. "Wait, that's not the point! So you knew this whole time and didn't think any differently of me?"

"Of course not! Why would I?"

There were too many words to describe how Ryuko was feeling. Bewildered, astounded, befuddled, bemused, embarrassed, dumbfounded… she couldn't even begin to pick one.

"So, hey! If that was all you wanted to talk about, I wanted to mention something too!" Ryuko shook her head, attempting to clear out her thoughts.

"What is it?"

"I wanna have a party for after midterms!"

"Ok? You always want to have parties. What's so different about this one?"

"I want you to invite your girlfriend!"

"Mako. She isn't my girlfriend."

"Oh! And have her invite any friends she wants to bring, too!"

"Fairly certain she doesn't have any frien-"

"And make sure that they bring some booze or snacks or something too! It's gonna be like a booze potluck party!" Ryuko quirked her eyebrow out of instinct before covering it with her palm. She hated to admit that Satsuki was beginning to rub off on her but it was becoming obvious.

"Alright, alright. I'll tell her. But don't expect her to show up. She's sort of a shut in."

Mako blew her cheeks out at Ryuko's statement, pinching her words out through taught lips. "I hope she shows up. I want to meet her."

Ryuko grinned and chuckled, reaching out and mussing Mako's hair playfully. It never ceased to amaze Ryuko what weights Mako was capable of lifting off her.

"I fucking hate this game." Using the palms of her hands, Ryuko pushed on her eyes softly, rubbing in small circles to relieve some of the dryness.

"Oh?" Satsuki's reply was mostly out of courtesy, but Ryuko could discern a bit of intrigue in it and decided to push forward with the discussion.

"I mean it. This game has so many issues."

"Like what?" Ryuko opened her eyes and blinked away the spots that she had pressed into her vision.

"Like, well. There are aspects of the leveling trees for certain classes that make absolutely no sense. We run around and see people using the same stuff we do because they've figured out that everything else is worthless." She looked over at Satsuki and was confounded to find that she was fully engaged in their conversation. Ryuko couldn't help but pause at the rare opportunity.

"What else?"

"Ah- well. I can't complain about the leveling since the game is based on making money monthly, but it is dog slow even when we level together." Satsuki perked a single eyebrow for an instant at the comment. It was mesmerizing for Ryuko when Satsuki did that. She was half-certain that it was some form of eyebrow hypnotism.

"Anything else, Matoi?"

"Plenty. I have so many complaints about this game." Satsuki settled back into her seat on the couch, closing her laptop and placing it on the end table next to her side.

"Continue, then."

"Erh, ok. Well. I also can't stand some of the navigation aspects. There seems to be small glitches with places on maps, shoddy interfaces with finding objectives- hell, the whole UI could use a good overhaul at this point." Another perked eyebrow. Ryuko blinked rapidly to get the effect of it to disappear faster. "I've noticed some issues with chat logs, too. Oh! And don't even get me started on some of the dungeons and how off-course they seem to be with their level to difficulty ratio." It happened again and Ryuko had to shake her head to ward off the effect. "And- um. Fucking dammit, Kiryuin. Could you still those dancing fur lumps you call eyebrows, for like, five fuckin' seconds?!"

Ryuko leaned across the space between them and using her thumbs and fore knuckles of each hand, pinched at Satsuki's eyebrows. Satsuki made no attempt to pull away from the activity, choosing to furl her eyebrows progressively harsher as Ryuko began to squeeze at them. She alternated between each eyebrow, squishing one and then the other and then rolling both of them. It was fascinating for her. Ryuko swore that they had to be the most tender and malleable things she had ever been graced with the opportunity to feel. "Are you quite done, Matoi?"

Ryuko barely heard Satsuki's words. She was too focused on the task at hand. She didn't even notice when Satsuki reached up and pinched her nose shut. When Ryuko began to breathe through her mouth, Satsuki lifted her other hand and sealed Ryuko's other channel of breathing off as well.

It was when the eyebrows in her grip started to twitch to life like tiny animals that Ryuko realized that something was wrong. She went to inhale and found herself incapable. It took her a few moments to realize the implications of not being able to breathe before letting go of Satsuki's face and moving to free herself from Satsuki's grip. As soon as her eyebrows had been freed of Ryuko's ministrations, Satsuki let go and kicked Ryuko off the couch.

"That was- single-handedly- the greatest thing- I have ever felt." Ryuko gasped between her words in an attempt to keep herself from passing out.

"I would kick you out this instant if I knew you wouldn't come crawling back like the stray animal you are."

"Now whose fault is that? You're always the one asking me to come over, giving me beer, making me play games with you… if I didn't know better I'd say you actually enjoy my company, Kiryuin." Satsuki scowled at Ryuko, adding a sharp exhale to emphasize it.

"Good thing you know better then, hm?"

Ryuko snickered. "Oh hey. Before I forget. Mako wants me to invite you to our after-midterm exams party. She wants you to bring your friends too."

Silence ensued and Ryuko couldn't help but snort, starting to pull herself up from where she had ended up on the ground.

"Figures that the great Kiryuin Satsuki would be too stuck up to come to a party. Can't say I didn't see that comin-"

"When is it?" Satsuki stood from her spot and moved towards the door to her apartment, a sure sign that Ryuko was being made to leave.

"Ah, next week. Friday night after our class's exam."

"Then you can tell your friend to expect me there with some guests." Ryuko rolled her shoulders, popping her back as she stepped past Satsuki.

"Yea, ok. I'll believe it when I see it."

"Kiryuin Satsuki never lies, Matoi."

"Mmhm, ok. I'll see you Friday, Kiryuin. With all those friends of yours. Make sure to tell all of them to bring something to drink!" Ryuko let out a harsh laugh as she walked away from Satsuki. For once, she got the last word.

"I thought she was in your class, Ryuko!" Mako's voice was louder than it needed to be as they navigated down a crammed dormitory hallway. Ryuko shifted the beer case on her shoulder slightly before responding.

"She is. But she said she needed to go get her friends and shit. Plus, she was done with her exam a good half-hour before me." She nearly rammed the second case of beer she had under her arm against a couple who were taking up space in the walkway. "Fuckin' suck on each other's tongues in your own goddamn rooms!"

Mako's cheeks were puffed out in frustration. "Well, I'm glad she's coming! Would've been nice to have some extra hands to move all this booze, though…"

"I'm still surprised you managed to reserve the community space for this." The couple eventually flattened against the wall and out of the way, resuming their snogging much to Ryuko's annoyance. They eventually managed to squeeze past and into the stairwell.

"I know, right?! We lucked out with the head dorm monitor being gone tonight!" Ryuko groaned with each step down the first flight of stairs. It had been their third trip.

"You're sure this is the last of everything, Mako?" brown hair bounced rhythmically to the sounds of their clomping feet.

"Yup! I already got the beer pong table set up and everyone else is bringing their own drinks! Though did you really need to bring two cases of beer?"

"You can never have enough beer with the way I drink, Mako." They both chortled at her statement briefly before teetering off. It had been a bit too truthful to be completely humorous.

"Honestly, Ryuko, you've gotta be an expensive date!" once they made it to the ground floor they stopped a moment to let Mako catch her breath.

"I can't say I feel bad for all the guys who try to get me drunk at bars. Could swear my liver is made out of somethin' stronger than steel."

"Still! It can't be any fun when everyone else is plastered around you!" Mako cracked her fingers and wiggled her arms before leaning over and hefting up her box of assorted liquor bottles.

"Nah, it's actually hilarious. You should see the stuff I manage to get you to do when you're trashed."

"I don't want to know! Please don't tell me!"

When they arrived at the community hall, Ryuko had to push aggressively through the crowd of people at the door to get in. She glanced up at a clock that was on the wall while setting her boxes down on the alcohol table.

"Man, it's only ten and this place is already hoppin'." She shook her head, rubbing her neck. It would be another fast-burn event from what she could tell. On top of that, from a brief survey of the people in the space, it was obvious that Satsuki had yet to show. Though, as if thinking about Satsuki was enough to create her out of thin air, Ryuko spotted her at the entrance to the hall.

Ryuko didn't believe in fate. It went against some of her moral choices in life to do so. But the moment that Satsuki caught her eyes from across the room, Ryuko couldn't help but quip internally about the coincidence of the situation. Satsuki merely rose one side of her mouth ever so slightly, a look of smugness settling across her features. It made Ryuko grind her teeth together. She couldn't tell if she was floored in anger or desire and that bit of confusion had her leaning more towards anger.

It hadn't struck her until Satsuki broke eye contact that the room had nearly gone silent. Mako appeared between a small fissure in the group next to her. She reached up and grabbed Ryuko by the collar of her jacket, dragging her down to her level with apparent anxiety.

"Fuck! Ryuko, what is Gamagoori doing here?!"

"Huh? Who?" Mako shook Ryuko violently, a look of horror plastered on her face. Even with as terrified as Mako was, she managed to keep her voice to a grating whisper.

"Fuckin' Gamagoori Ira?! The head of campus security?!" Ryuko eyes widened and she shot up, looking across the crowd to where Satsuki was. Right behind her towered the form of none other than the infamous Gamagoori Ira. His beefy arms were crossed over his chest in distaste at the situation before him. She dropped down to Mako's level again after confirming it for herself.

"Aw shit!"

"Why is he here?!"

"I don't know, man! I don't know! Shit- fuck- ok. Look. I'm going to go over there, Mako, and get some answers. If need be I'll take the fall for this." Mako started shaking her head in vigorous disapproval. Ryuko clamped her hand over Mako's mouth before she could rebuke. "Look. You've actually got aspirations, Mako. I'm not going to let you fuck that up."

Before Mako could protest further, Ryuko had slid past the group of people gawking in front of them and towards the door where Satsuki and Gamagoori were still standing. When she managed to push her way over, it shocked her to find that Gamagoori hadn't been the only person to accompany Satsuki.

"Good evening, Matoi. I see we made quite the entrance." Satsuki lowered her gaze to meet Ryuko's before nodding her chin at the hushed murmurs of the crowd behind her. Ryuko let out a singular 'Hah!' of laughter before clapping her hands and rubbing her palms together nervously.

Ryuko leaned in close enough that she knew only Satsuki would be able to hear her. "Why is Gamagoori here, Kiryuin?"

"He's one of my friends." Despite herself, Ryuko's jaw fell open. "One of a few I brought for tonight's event."

A tug at her sleeve was what brought Ryuko back out of her daze. She looked down to find Mako standing beside her looking a bit less intimidated than before. She mouthed the words, 'That's your girlfriend?' to Ryuko.

The response to Mako came in unison from Satsuki and Ryuko in the form of, "She's not my girlfriend."

Ryuko rolled her eyes, pretending that the word 'jinx' didn't almost roll off her tongue. She leaned back towards Satsuki and made to speak before being cut off by the booming holler of Gamagoori's voice.

"Mankanshoku! Thank you for inviting us to your party!" he bowed to emphasize his words. Ryuko looked back in time to watch Mako paste a smile across her lips that only Ryuko could tell was fake.

"Don't even mention it! Come in, come in! Get a drink!" Mako rushed in and grabbed Gamagoori by one of his massive hands, tugging him further into the space. It was apparent as they moved that some of the other party-goers were going to have to evacuate to make room for him.

As Mako brushed by Ryuko, she winked slyly as if to convey that everything was going to be fine. The noise in the room began to escalate as the tension broke. Ryuko let out a hefty sigh that had been building up in her chest.

"Matoi." Satsuki addressed her and Ryuko turned back to her. "Let me introduce the rest of my friends."

Ryuko nodded as Satsuki stepped to the side, revealing more people who had yet to cross the threshold to the room.

"This is Sanageyama Uzu. Captain of the university's kendo team and primary student leader of the athletics department."

The grin that was on his face had Ryuko bordering on a scowl but she took his hand when he offered it nonetheless. The squeeze that followed matched Ryuko's own and it seemed like the grip lasted longer than was comfortable. Ryuko began to wonder, as Sanageyama's knuckles popped under the pressure, if this was his way of being friendly or attempting to gain some traction on dominance. She merely showed off a snaggletoothed smirk before letting go.

"Well met, Matoi Ryuko." He used the same hand to run his fingers through his hair. Ryuko was certain he did it to show off his biceps.

"Pleasure's all mine." The words came off with a growl. He only moved when Satsuki cleared her throat in impatience and motioned idly with a flick of her wrist for him to go. As he scooted past her and into the crowd, Ryuko was certain she heard him whisper to Satsuki the words, 'I like her'.

"Next is Inumuta Houka. He handles most of the universities information technology needs."

It was an understatement to say that Ryuko thought he was preoccupied. Inumuta practical had his nose to his cell phone, his thumb swishing and prodding at the screen rapidly. The high-necked jacket he had on didn't help to convey a sense of friendliness to Ryuko either. When he decided to speak he had to reach up and unzip the material past his mouth.

"Matoi. I'll be back to speak with you later about the game you've been playing with Lady Satsuki. I believe there is much to discuss." Ryuko couldn't get a word in edgewise before he melted into the crowd behind her and disappeared completely.

"You've got some really great friends, Kiryuin. Couldn't do better myself." Satsuki merely perked a single eyebrow at Ryuko's sarcastic tone.

"Oy! Dog-face! Don't speak to my lady that way!" Ryuko turned towards the high-pitched voice, only to find that there was nothing at eye level. It only struck her to look down when Satsuki began to introduce another person.

"And last but not least is Jakazure Nonon. Head of the universities performing arts and drum major for the marching band. She's world renowned for her musical capabilities on multiple instruments."

Ryuko snorted, leaning down at the hips until she was an inch or so above Nonon's eye-level. If the pink hair hadn't been enough to put Ryuko in a bad mood, her voice had done the trick. "Hey there kiddo, you lose your mom somewhere? She go off to drink and leave you all alone?"

She didn't see the right hook until it had boxed her ear thoroughly. Ryuko recoiled, hopping on her toes and cradling the side of her head while hissing her distaste. "Pack quite a punch for a kid, don't I? Fuckface."

Nonon flipped Ryuko the bird as she shimmied past and into the crowd. Ryuko followed her with a disbelieving fingertip while staring at Satsuki open-mouthed. She could tell that Satsuki was trying to reign in a smile.

"You should be glad she chose to do that instead of open-palming your nose into your brain." Satsuki's words did little to soothe the tumultuous fury in Ryuko's core. "My mistake for neglecting to mention that we took martial arts together when we were young."

"Ryuko!" Mako burst through the horde of people behind her wielding two beer cans. She pressed one into Ryuko's hand and the other into Satsuki's. "Drink! Be happy! It's so good to finally meet you Sats- er- Kiryuin!"

"As it is good to finally meet you as well, Mankanshoku. Matoi speaks highly of you." Ryuko cracked her beer can open and chugged back a quarter of it before burping loudly. Satsuki rolled her eyes.

Mako was beaming at Satsuki's words which made her next statement all that much louder. "Man, you two make cute girlfriends!"

"We are not girlfriends!" the response came in stereo from Ryuko and Satsuki again. The boom of their voices combined caused a sudden hush to set on the people in the room. Ryuko groaned, slamming the rest of her drink back and smashing the can between her palms.

"I need about ten more of those if you don't mind, Mako." Noise resumed again and Mako saluted, rushing off to get Ryuko another drink.

Weird was a few degrees shy of what Ryuko felt was adequate in explaining the situation at hand. She had never been with Satsuki in a public setting outside of class, let alone a college party. Whenever they were together it was just them, and even that had a tendency of ending up awkward and forced. So as she watched Satsuki idly look about the throng of people, her arms crossed protectively over her chest, Ryuko felt second hand embarrassment on Satsuki's behalf. She sighed, taking a step closer to Satsuki and nudging her with her elbow.

The look Satsuki shot Ryuko was lethal but she chose to ignore it. "C'mon, Kiryuin. Let's go find those shitty friends of yours." She cracked Satsuki's beer can open for her then began forcing her way through the wall of bodies.

With the way that the sea of people opened up around her, Ryuko knew that Satsuki was following her. She also knew what she was going to have to do to get Satsuki more comfortable in that environment and it was by luck that she managed to find the person she was looking for on her first stop.

"Hey pipsqueak! Are you even old enough to be drinking?" Ryuko snatched the wine cooler out of Nonon's hand. This time when Nonon struck out, Ryuko was sure to take a swift step back to dodge it. She managed to evade three more alternated kicks and punches while draining the bottle completely.

"Matoi!"

Nonon seemed more frustrated about her drink disappearing than Ryuko's earlier comment. Ryuko reached out to the alcohol table and grabbed another malt beverage, reaching into her pocket she pulled out her dorm key and popped the cap off. She offered it to Nonon, thankful when she took it without violence.

"How do you even manage being around this trash monster, lady Satsuki?" Ryuko was content to hear an amused exhale from behind her.

"To be quite honest, Matoi has a habit of sticking around when she is less than wanted." Ryuko narrowed her eyes at Satsuki.

"Fuckin' bullshit. You keep me around of your own fuckin' accord."

Nonon piped in after swigging down a portion of her drink. "Didn't lady Satsuki tell you, Matoi? Her other hobby is petting zoos and she was hoping to make you a new addition."

Ryuko knelt down, no longer caring about putting herself in direct harm. She took a calming breath before speaking. "Tell me, Jakazure. Why do you call Kiryuin 'lady'?"

"It's called respect, Matoi. People who aren't you actually care about that."

"Yes, but, here's what I want to know." Ryuko tilted her head, suddenly intrigued in the answer she hoped to receive. "Why respect her?"

There was a moment where Nonon's eyes glanced past Ryuko's shoulder. Ryuko guessed that she was looking at Satsuki by the angle of her gaze. Her mouth opened and closed with no words falling off her tongue."B-because-" Nonon gulped down the majority of her drink, "did you know that lady Satsuki and I dated?!"

The change in subject had Ryuko reeling, more so than the punch Nonon had gotten her with earlier. She pivoted back onto her feet and held Satsuki with scrutinizing disbelief. Satsuki looked to the side and sipped at her beer, her shoulders shrugging slightly. When Ryuko turned back to Nonon with another question on her lips, she was confounded to find that Nonon had vanished.

"You did not date her." Ryuko grabbed another beer off the table after realizing that Mako was never going to come with her drinks.

"And if I did?" Satsuki's response was not what Ryuko wanted to hear. She opened her beer a bit too forcefully and was rewarded with it dripping down her hand. Ryuko hastily sucked the excess off the top before it could make a mess.

"Yah know what? I don't want to think about it. Let's pick a different conversation topic."

"Now, now, Matoi. If I didn't know better I'd say that you were jealous of Jakazure."

"Good thing you fuckin' know better, huh?"

A faint grin curled across Satsuki's lips and despite herself, Ryuko couldn't help but return a snide smile in kind. Unfortunately, the moment was short lived as Inumuta materialized beside Satsuki. His attention was still glued to his smartphone.

"Matoi."

"What, four-eyes?" Inumuta pushed his glasses back up his nose as if Ryuko's remark had reminded him that they existed.

"Play nice with Inumuta, Matoi. He's far more important than you are." Before Ryuko could protest Satsuki's retreat, she was already gone. Ryuko let out what seemed like the hundredth sigh that night as she emptied her beer and reached for another. _Guess I don't need to look out for her, after all._

"Ok, seriously, what do you want, nerd? You're startin' to freak me out." Inumuta adjusted his glasses again before looking up at Ryuko through the lenses.

"I wanted to ask you a few things concerning the game that you-"

"Yes, yes, that I play with _lady_ Satsuki. I can remember what you said five minutes ago."

He nodded his understanding, zipping his jacket back over his mouth briefly before unzipping it to talk again. Ryuko chalked the action up to a nervous tick. "Lady Satsuki mentioned that you had some interesting points to make about improvements that could be done on it."

"Well, really, I was just bitchin' about it."

"Would you mind restating your 'bitching' for me?" he elaborated the curse word with hand-signed quotation marks.

"Ah, sure. I guess."

It hadn't been Ryuko's intention to talk to Inumuta for half an hour about a game that she could barely stand, but that's what happened. She found it sort of relieving and it helped that Inumuta turned out to be a decent listener despite the fact that he was constantly on his phone. By the time that she had started to hit on miniscule details Ryuko looked up at the clock in the room.

"I just officially spent too much time running my mouth, I am so sorry." Ryuko's beer was warm as she drank it down.

"No, it was very informative, Matoi. Thank you." Her brow furled. There had been something about the way he worded himself that came off as bizarre to her.

"Informative?" she enunciated the word. Inumuta looked up from his phone at her and Ryuko could swear she saw a glint of panic in his eyes.

Before Ryuko could get an answer there was an uproar from behind her. She cringed at the noise, turning to find that Sanageyama had taken to standing atop the beer pong table; shirtless. He pointed at where Ryuko stood and shouted at a volume level that managed to cut through the rest of the noise in the community hall.

"Matoi Ryuko! I challenge you to a game of beer pong!" Ryuko blinked a few times, processing his request as slowly as dial-up internet.

"Why?" the singular word seemed to knock the wind out of Sanageyama's sails. To Ryuko's dismay it only lasted a couple seconds.

"Because it's said you're the best in the school! I must test my might against yours!" she rolled her eyes, attempting to ignore the slight blush she knew was creeping across her cheeks. It was insulting to her to remember that she was just as much, "Wrong Side of the Tracks, Matoi Ryuko" as she was, "Beer Pong Champion, Matoi Ryuko". Before she could refuse Sanageyama's offer, the room began to chant her name.

"For fuck's sake. Shut up yah assholes, I'm going!" the crowd cheered and Ryuko swore she saw dust shake loose from the ceiling.

Hands grabbed at her, pulling her through the crowd until she was firmly planted opposite of the table from Sanageyama. If she had been hesitant to play before seeing his disgustingly confident face, she wasn't after.

Ryuko removed her jacket and moved to lay it over the arm of a chair beside the table. It hardly surprised her that Satsuki was sitting there. Her left leg crossed over her right. Ryuko held her jacket out to her. "Hold that for me, will yah?"

Satsuki scrutinized it with the weight of an entire planet. "Depends."

"On what?" Ryuko was starting to get impatient, still holding the jacket out between them.

"I'll hold your jacket on two conditions, Matoi." Ryuko dropped her arm, looking around to find another place to set her clothing on and finding nothing.

"Spit 'em out, Kiryuin. Ain't got all night."

"The first is that you must defeat Sanageyama." Ryuko nodded her agreement. "The second is that you play me next."

Ryuko smirked devilishly, tossing her jacket into Satsuki's lap in confirmation of her rules. "You're going to regret that, Kiryuin."

"We'll see about that."

If Ryuko had to answer the question, 'What was the most disappointing moment in your life?' her answer would have been her beer pong match with Sanageyama. While she could admit that he was a good player, it turned out that he was a light-weight. After a few well-placed tosses on Ryuko's part, he had drank five cups and it ended up severely impairing his reflexes.

After Sanageyama threw an especially bad shot, completely missing the table, Ryuko began juggling three ping pong balls. She had learned early on in college that the best strategy in beer pong was sheer intimidation. And nothing intimidated drunk people more than a sober person.

"C-can you stop doing that, Matoi?" Sanageyama ended his sentence with a nasty hiccup. Ryuko cringed sarcastically at the sound.

"Nah, man."

Sanageyama threw his last ping pong ball, managing to get one of Ryuko's cups. She toasted the drink to him before raising it to her lips and pitching both of her balls towards his side of the table. They both landed in his last cup and the room burst into hysterics at the act. Ryuko could swear she saw Sanageyama's pride shatter.

The victory was short-lived, though. As Ryuko finished her beer and watched the table be reset for the next game, Satsuki rose from where she had been sitting and stood opposite of Ryuko. They locked eyes and the space around them faded into background noise. Despite the deafening volume of everyone else, Ryuko could still hear Satsuki's words as if she was right beside her.

"Best two out of three, Matoi?" Ryuko knew she didn't have to speak loudly to be heard.

"You sure you can handle that much beer, Kiryuin?" Ryuko was certain that this had been the most she had ever seen Satsuki smile. Even if the action was just the quirk of her lips.

"Of course. I won't be losing, after all." Ryuko scoffed and bounced a couple ping pong balls on the table.

"Then don't say I didn't warn you."

When Ryuko looked up from the idle bouncing she was doing, she was taken aback by the sight across from her. Satsuki was watching her, amused, and behind her the four she had brought with her were standing at attention. It struck her as what she imagined a small militia would look like. Each of the four gave their words of support before stepping back to watch the game.

"Good luck, Ryuko!" Mako's voice was louder than anyone's and it didn't help that she was right beside her.

"I never need luck, Mako. But I'll take what you can give me." Ryuko set her hand on Mako's head and smiled warmly before turning back to her objective.

"Winners shoot first, Matoi." Satsuki offered the opportunity to Ryuko with an open palm.

"Nah. Go first. I insist." Ryuko added a slight bow for effect and Satsuki merely shrugged at her attempt to joke.

It was apparent after the fact that giving Satsuki the chance to go first was probably not the wisest decision. Her first two shots landed in the same cup and Ryuko had to concentrate to keep her jaw hinged. She drank her three cups begrudgingly then hurled her two balls towards Satsuki's side. She only managed to get Satsuki to drink two cups.

The first game was close. They both ended up with one cup and Ryuko was shooting next. She kissed the ping pong ball in her hand, thanking whatever higher power was looking over her and flung the ball for its target. It was on course and Ryuko moved to do a victory fist-pump only to watch in awe as the ball shifted slightly, missing the cup by a hair. She was about to play it off as a draft in the room until she noticed that Satsuki only had one ball in her hand.

"Oh? So that's how it's gonna be, huh?" Ryuko turned around to look for the offending ball, only to find that Nonon was half-slumped over, her fingers grazing over it. Ryuko snapped her fingers at Nonon and rushed over to pick it up before it could go missing. Nonon stuck her tongue out and blew raspberries in Ryuko's direction as she slinked back to Satsuki's side of the table.

Satsuki averted her eyes from Ryuko when she turned around and bounced the ball back towards her.

"Look. You can play dirty all you want. You're still not going to win." When Satsuki looked back and caught her gaze, Ryuko's breath hitched. She had seen a sparse amount of emotions in Satsuki's eyes before. Hell, Ryuko was sure that she could list them off on her hands and still have room to spare. The look of playfulness that Satsuki was giving her that moment, though? That was new. Just rolled off the production line, brand-spankin' new, and Ryuko wasn't certain how to handle it.

"You have one more shot, Matoi. Make it count." Ryuko swallowed hard and readied herself for what was hopefully the last toss of that game.

 _Shit's gettin' real._ She mused to herself. When she flung the ball, she made sure to flick it slightly between her fingers. It didn't surprise her when it curved slightly mid-flight, the english she had put on it just barely enough to get Satsuki's cheap shot to miss. Instead, with nothing to change its trajectory, Satsuki's ball managed to smack right into Ryuko's forehead as her ball landed, unharmed, in Satsuki's last cup.

"Nice shot, Matoi." Satsuki picked up her cup, fishing the ball out of it before drinking its contents.

"Fuck that stings!" Ryuko muttered while rubbing her forehead. When the sensation ebbed, she looked up at Satsuki and smirked. "Guess this is going to be easier than I thought. I'll win the next one quick so you won't have to drink yourself silly, Kiryuin."

Instead of verbally responding, Satsuki responded with shooting a ball into one of the new cups on Ryuko's side. Ryuko gaped at the action.

"It wasn't even your turn!" Satsuki raised her hand, pinky and thumb extended, motioning to Ryuko to drink up.

The second game was a test of their wits against each other. It was push and pull. If Satsuki wasn't manipulating the game through her own ways then Ryuko was. The movements and tactics were so finite, nearly inexistent, that their observers hardly discerned what was happening. Except of course for Satsuki's entourage, who made it apparent whenever they saw a shift in the tides of the game.

"You've got this lady Satsuki! Take that shit head down a notch!" Nonon's yelling distracted Ryuko causing her ball to miss. Satsuki responded by throwing a ball into Ryuko's last cup.

"Fuck!" she slammed back the beer, internally screaming at the victorious look on Satsuki's face. "How are you even still standing?! I had you pegged for an easy drunk, Kiryuin!"

All Satsuki did was shrug, turning so that the veil of her hair covered her face. Ryuko bounced a ball against the table, her eyes fixated on Satsuki as the dim haze from the alcohol began to well up in her consciousness.

 _One more game._

The table was reset and the third game commenced. This time, their throws were less enthusiastic. It had gotten late and the party was starting to wind down. Even Satsuki's group was beginning to show signs of having drank a little too much.

In the end, the only two people left standing were Satsuki and Ryuko. It was only fitting that their last game ended up being a tie as well. Ryuko had underestimated the force with which Satsuki would use her ball to change the course of her own, causing them to land in each other's last cups. There had been a moment where they both stared at their respective drinks, then looked up at one another, and then back at their drinks. Ryuko had burst into hysterical laughter and over the volume of it, she could've sworn she heard Satsuki giggling as well.

"Ah, man." Ryuko brushed stray tears from her cheeks, moving around the table to where Satsuki was standing. "That fuckin' figures, doesn't it?"

"I suppose you're right." They stood together, taking in the still of the room around them. Except for a few stray partiers, the majority of the people that had been there before had either left or fallen asleep. Ryuko watched as Satsuki covered her mouth with the back of her hand, hiding a yawn.

"Alright. C'mon, Kiryuin. You can stay in my room." As Ryuko turned to leave, she could hear Satsuki lean against the table. It groaned from the sudden weight.

"That won't be necessary, Matoi." Turning back around, Ryuko crossed her arms and glared at Satsuki.

"I'm not letting you walk home alone."

"I'll take a cab."

"Did you even bring any money with you?" Ryuko could tell that the beer had taken an effect on Satsuki. Despite her calm demeanor, she patted at her jean pockets, reaching into one of her back ones and only pulling out her license. Ryuko snorted as Satsuki tilted her head back, groaning softly. "That's what I thought."

"Then I'll have one of my friends' take me home." Ryuko motioned towards a couch on the far-end of the room, her mouth open in snide confusion. On it was the jumble of Nonon, Sanageyama, Gamagoori, and Mako's bodies. They were all out cold.

"And I'm fairly certain Inumuta went home a good two hours ago." Satsuki glanced at her wrist watch, a brief look of contempt crossing her face when she did so. They spent a few minutes in silence as Ryuko let Satsuki mull over the facts.

"Are you not even drunk, Matoi?" she pondered Satsuki's question herself. Ryuko tested her reflexes, taking a few steps back and a few steps forward and even going as far as to lean over and touch her toes.

"Nah. I'm in a pretty good place. I'd say I'm at least somewhat tipsy."

"How is that physically possible?" Ryuko shrugged at Satsuki's question.

" _You're_ drunk, though. So c'mon. Trust me, you don't want to curl up with those guys on the couch because as soon as the head monitor gets back in the morning it's going to be a blood bath." There was another pause between them and it only broke when Satsuki sighed thickly.

"Fine. But if you try anything, Matoi, so help me-"

"Would you stop fuckin' pinning me as some pervert?" Ryuko turned and started to leave the hall. Behind her echoed the measured clicks of Satsuki's heels on the tile flooring. "I mean, really. For all the times I've been in your home you'd think we'd be past this."

"Your reputation is far less than untarnished." They came to a stop in front of the dormitory's elevators. Ryuko reached out and jammed the up button with a threatening growl.

"Hey, fuck you." Once she was thoroughly satisfied that the elevator had been called, Ryuko turned back to Satsuki and prodded her index finger in the space between them. "Yea, I've taken my fair share of women to bed. But it was all mutual. So you can take whatever rumor you caught wind of and stuff it up-"

"Shut up, Matoi."

The force behind Satsuki's words was completely uncharacteristic of her. Ryuko took a physical step back at the scorn that wafted over her.

"You continually assume, completely unaware of the other half of the information." Satsuki had shortened the distance between them, matching Ryuko's back pedal with her own step forward. Ryuko braced herself, hands clenched into painful fists at her side.

"And you continue to piss me the fuck off but here we still are. Why is that Satsuki?"

If it hadn't been for the soft ding of the elevator and Satsuki's hasty retreat into the newly opened space, Ryuko wasn't certain what would have happened. Following her, Ryuko clicked on a button for the sixth floor and leaned against the railing adjacent to Satsuki. The strained air between them waned as they both took a few calming breaths. Ryuko was the first to break the silence.

"Sorry."

"Mmm."

Two floors passed by.

"Don't call me Satsuki." Ryuko had to think back a few minutes before remembering her slip.

"For the- you know what? No. You're sleeping in my bed tonight. And how long have we known each other? I'm calling you fucking Satsuki. And you know what else? You can just call me Ryuko from now on because I know you've been wanting to. You may as well just get it over with."

It was quiet for the rest of their climb to Ryuko's floor. Another ding sounded and they exited the confined space. Satsuki tagged behind Ryuko as she navigated down the hallway to her dorm room. She fished her key out of her pocket and opened the door, stepping in and letting Satsuki follow behind her.

"You can deal with the mess." Ryuko was still fuming as she threw her jacket into the open closet and began to wrench off her belt.

"Cleaner than I imagined it would be." She heard the mattress squeak behind her. Ryuko looked back to see Satsuki removing her shoes while observing the litter of dirty clothes about the area. "Also helps that you have a full bed."

"Yea, well. Don't think you're getting that whole thing to yourself. Be damned if I'm sleeping on the floor in my own room. Hell, I haven't vacuumed since I got here." She snickered when Satsuki withdrew her feet from the ground at her words.

"Wonderful." The bed frame groaned and creaked as Satsuki situated herself. Ryuko finished taking off her pants and slipped under the blanket beside her.

It was awkward at first. Satsuki had opted for sleeping on her back and Ryuko had found that resting on her side facing Satsuki was the most comfortable for that night. She tried not to look at Satsuki for a few minutes but eventually gave up, figuring that if she got it out of her system earlier she could go to sleep sooner. For that reason, Ryuko noticed the thick swallowing that Satsuki did and the way her eyes were scrolling. "Dammit, Satsuki. You drank too much, didn't you?"

"Please don't talk."

"Got the whole 'world-spinning' thing going on, don't you?"

Satsuki didn't respond, instead she closed her eyes. Opening them again a few second later and repeating the process. Ryuko groaned, opening her arms and curling her fingers at Satsuki.

"C'mere."

"No."

"Look. You can suffer for the rest of the night or I can help make it go away so you can sleep." Ryuko saw Satsuki's top lip twitch in annoyance.

"Fine. But I swear if you-"

"We went over this already. Trust me for once, would yah? If there's one thing I know about, it's being drunk."

Satsuki let out a resigned sigh before turning onto her side and scooting in close against Ryuko, her face pressed against Ryuko's chest. Ryuko pulled the pillow closer to her face as a barrier between her mouth and Satsuki's head. When she drooled that night- since it wasn't a question of if she would- she wanted to make sure that she wouldn't be beaten soundly for getting slobber on something other than herself or her bed.

Five minutes passed and the rigidness of Satsuki's body eventually loosened. It was when her breathing leveled out that Ryuko was certain she had fallen asleep. What ended up confusing Ryuko was that she herself was finding it difficult to pass into the realm of dreams. Usually a good night of drinking and playing would have her out cold before she could even get to bed. Yet there she was, completely wired.

It wasn't her first time falling asleep with someone else in her bed. Nor was it her first time falling asleep with someone cradled in her arms. Even on top of that, it wasn't her first time doing so with someone she hadn't been sexually involved with. So it baffled her as to why sleep wasn't coming as swiftly as it usually did and it continued to do so right up until Satsuki murmured a singular word in her slumber.

"Ryuko…" Ryuko's breath hitched and her grip tightened on Satsuki's shirt and waist. It was obvious then why she had been unable to doze off and the realization of it caused an eerie sense of dread to form in the pit of her stomach.

"Aw shit." _I'm in love with Kiryuin fuckin' Satsuki._

Time didn't seem to matter much after midterms had passed. Ryuko floated by on the tide of everything, managing to hold tight on her schoolwork while balancing the occasional party. On top of that she still found time to game with Satsuki. Before she knew it, two more months had shot by and finals season was creeping up.

Ryuko's realization of her feelings for Satsuki had affected her behavior around her less than she had anticipated. They still angled harsh words at each other, gamed relentlessly during their time together, and Ryuko still often found herself resenting Satsuki. Her new found emotions ended up being the very definition of anticlimactic.

"Mmmnnn…" Ryuko yawned loudly, stretching her arms over her head. They had been gaming for a couple hours and the leveling was starting to get boring. She placed her laptop on the coffee table and glanced over at Satsuki briefly.

It was a Sunday afternoon. Which meant that Satsuki hadn't needed to leave her apartment for work or school. In turn, that meant that Satsuki had chosen to dress casual with her hair up in a sloppy bun instead of leaving it down. The glasses she had started to wear added to the librarian feel she gave off and her clothing choice was different, too. Opting for a loose fitting hoodie and pajama pants. It never ceased to amaze, and disgust, Ryuko with how Satsuki could pull off both formal and informal wear with ease. She averted her eyes from Satsuki and stared at the black television screen in front of her.

"Man I'm horny." Ryuko sighed before pausing. _Did I just say that out loud? Nah. I definitely said that in my head._ She looked over at Satsuki for a second, confirming her thoughts. Satsuki hadn't budged. _Oh thank-_

"Well then," Satsuki broke Ryuko's internal reflection and placed her laptop beside Ryuko's on the table, "it's your lucky day, Matoi."

"Uh." Ryuko was aware that her face had flushed as she watched Satsuki stand up and stretch. She could hear popping noises all the way from Satsuki's toes to her neck. "What?"

Satsuki took a few steps towards the hallway leading to her bedroom before turning back to Ryuko, her fingers removing the glasses from her face and placing them on the stand next to the couch. "You said you were aroused?"

"I- ah-"

"And I've been less than satisfied as of late. I figured that we could take care of our problems mutually."

"I'm dreaming. Or dead. You can't possibly be serious." Ryuko finally found her voice despite still being wide-eyed and gaping.

"You can choose to believe that. If you don't care to join I'm going to take care of it myself without you and you can leave." With her matter-of-fact statement, Satsuki made her way down the hallway, leaving Ryuko to sputter uselessly for a few moments.

"Man, even if I'm dreaming I'd never pass up this opportunity!" Ryuko hopped off the couch, scrambling to catch up with Satsuki. When she crossed into the bedroom her shin was hooked by Satsuki's foot and she hit the floor, splaying out on her back with a powerful _thud_. Ryuko felt a weight settle on her chest before she opened her eyes.

"Well this seems familiar." Ryuko smirked at Satsuki's words, squirming just as much from being under her foot as from the husky tone in her voice. She watched with a little too much interest as Satsuki unzipped her hoodie and tossed it on the floor. It was amazing to Ryuko that Satsuki could even wear a tank top with grace.

"Yea, well, I can assure you that the last time was far less enjoyable." Satsuki lessened the pressure on Ryuko's chest, choosing to kneel over her midriff instead. Ryuko had to bite her lip to keep herself from whimpering at the utter sensuality in Satsuki's movements.

"Can I touch you?" Satsuki extended her hand, her fingertips nearly brushing against the curve of Ryuko's jaw. Ryuko just nodded in affirmation, unable to respond verbally from the intensity in Satsuki's gaze.

Satsuki traced the edges and lines of Ryuko's face, making no move to rush her actions despite her previous impatience. Her fingers were cool and deliberate and Ryuko was certain that so little had never turned her on so fiercely before in her life.

Their eyes stayed glued together during the entire process. Fixated on the small details of each other's reactions. When Ryuko nipped at a stray finger as it brushed past her lips, she was rewarded with a grin from Satsuki that nearly stopped her heart. It hadn't been one of her usual, slighted perks of the mouth. No, the grin she gave Ryuko that time was huge in comparison, and she could swear she caught a brief, and miniscule, flash of silver teeth.

"You can touch me, too, Ryuko." She swallowed hard. Hearing Satsuki say her name still left vivid flashbacks to what Ryuko had come to deem 'The Night of Reckoning'. Ryuko pushed it out of her mind, lifting her hands and settling them on Satsuki's hips.

Ryuko pressed down on Satsuki, urging her to settle herself in the cradle of her pelvis and involuntarily fidgeting when her wish was granted. She slid her palms up Satsuki's side, mapping out the minute points of her form that her eyes had been unable to find. Ryuko didn't even notice the bend of Satsuki's back until she had run her hands over it, finally realizing that her eyes had been shut.

When she opened them, Ryuko started at the closeness of Satsuki's face. _Have her eyes always been that blue?_ The question was lost and Ryuko was pulled from one reverie to another as Satsuki pressed their mouths together.

"Mn-" Ryuko quelled her moan. The sensation of Satsuki's lips against her own caused her fingers to curl and her fingernails scraped roughly against the fabric of Satsuki's tank top. In turn, the action made Satsuki break their kiss, her lips parting with a sigh. The look of complete ecstasy on Satsuki's face shook something loose in Ryuko's psyche and she dropped the leash that had been reigning her desires in for four whole months.

Ryuko had to admit that she turned most of her thoughts off. Instead, she opted for pressing into Satsuki's side and rolling on top of her, their lips connecting again more harshly. Satsuki grabbed handfuls of Ryuko's choppy black hair, causing her to pull away with a husky growl.

"Fuck, Satsuki, do that again."

"What? This?" Satsuki pulled at Ryuko's locks, causing her to bend with it, hissing in approval. Ryuko figured that was half the reason why Satsuki had decided to wrap her legs around her midriff. The other half had been for leverage, allowing her to lean up and scrape her teeth along the hollow of Ryuko's throat. Ryuko nearly came from just that.

"That's it. I can't take this anymore." Ryuko leaned back, unwrapping Satsuki's legs from her and straddling her waist. She ripped her t-shirt off over her head and cupped the back of Satsuki's neck, dragging her into a sitting position and pulling her tank top over her head. "Fuck, you're not wearing a bra."

Ryuko was dumb struck, staring at Satsuki's ample chest. "It's a Sunday. And you showed up early. Didn't quite have the time to get properly dressed."

"I have never loved Sunday's more." There were tears of joy in Ryuko's eyes as she settled into Satsuki's lap. She leaned forward, her hands gently cradling both breasts as she kissed softly at the areola on each. The heave of Satsuki's breathing whenever Ryuko mistakenly grazed a nipple was enough to tell her that she was on the right track.

"Get on with it, Matoi." The exasperation in Satsuki's voice caused Ryuko to snicker. She sat up, her eyes leveled with Satsuki's.

"And if I don't want to?" Satsuki reached out, her movements incomprehensibly fast, and wrapped one hand around Ryuko's throat and the other into the hair at the nape of her neck.

"Get. On. With. It." She punctuated each word with a brief but solid kiss and on the last one she nipped at Ryuko's bottom lip harshly. Satsuki let go of her throat while running her tongue across Ryuko's mouth. Ryuko made to capture it but missed the opportunity.

"Yea, ok." Ryuko's world was dipping and spinning from Satsuki's actions. "Can't really argue after that treatment." She leaned back down, suddenly realizing that her hands had been massaging Satsuki's breasts the entire time. _No wonder she's so impatient._

It was difficult to not continue offering her ministrations to Satsuki's erogenous zones in sluggish and excruciating detail but Ryuko valued her life a tad bit higher than usual in that moment. So when she finally ran her tongue languidly over one of Satsuki's pert nipples she was rewarded with a rough tug at her hair and the feel of Satsuki shuddering beneath her. Those actions alone were enough to spur her into activity, her mouth encircling one nipple while her fingertips pinched and rolled the other.

"Ah- Ryuko…" Ryuko glanced up at the mention of her name, her mouth too busy suckling to respond. The look of yearning on Satsuki's face stopped her in her tracks.

"Yup. Can't say no to that, either." She released her hands from Satsuki's breasts, getting a soft whimper in response to which Ryuko whispered a hurried, "I know, I know."

With her arms free, she maneuvered their legs, getting Satsuki to scoot in close and wrap her legs around Ryuko's waist. She reached under Satsuki's rump and lifted herself to her feet, taking a step forward and depositing her load onto the bed. "I must admit. You never struck me as fit."

"That statement usually would've pissed me off but I've got better things to worry about right now." Ryuko frowned while her hands worked at the tie to Satsuki's pajama bottoms. After loosening them she hooked her fingers around the fabric and pulled them over Satsuki's hips. "Man, you're not wearing any underwear either. It really is my lucky day."

"Please be quiet." The words that came out of Satsuki's mouth meant nothing to Ryuko. She was far too in awe of the sight of Satsuki laid out in front of her, no longer constrained by her lack of imagination.

Even if Ryuko had wanted to give one, she didn't have a response for Satsuki. She wanted to say something, she really did, but everything she could've possibly said would've never been enough. Then there was what she _actually_ wanted to say, and while it might've been enough, she wasn't about to touch that conversation topic in the middle of something so blatantly sexual in nature. So Ryuko bit back on it, realizing that if she couldn't say what she was feeling, she could at least use physical means to convey it as best she could.

"Ryuko." She hadn't realized how long she had paused until Satsuki called out to her. Fingers wrapped around Ryuko's wrists, pulling her in close, guiding her palms across the chiseled region of Satsuki's abdomen. "I want you to touch me."

Satsuki released Ryuko's wrists, letting her explore the vast regions of skin that she had so carelessly left untouched. She brushed her fingertips up the cavern between Satsuki's breasts and leaned down, her nose tracing circles around Satsuki's navel. She smirked when Satsuki's stomach dipped at the act.

"Sensitive?" Ryuko mused, brushing down Satsuki's arms and leaving goose bumps. She moved lazily, enjoying the sensations she roused from Satsuki and when Ryuko could tell that Satsuki was about to protest her treatment she would give in. A soft flick of a nipple, a deep and unbridled kiss, a seemingly accidental brush of her thigh against the space between Satsuki's legs. Anything so that she could continue to revel in the feel of Satsuki's skin against her own.

Then, when Ryuko had gotten her fill, she kissed Satsuki tenderly, her fingers tracing down the inside of Satsuki's thigh until she felt slickness and heat. Satsuki clawed at Ryuko's shoulders when she firmly pressed her fingers into her folds, massaging in circles that were too low before gradually moving up. As soon as Ryuko grazed against the swell of Satsuki's clitoris, Satsuki broke their kiss. Her fingers hurriedly unclipped Ryuko's bra and her mouth moved to capture one of Ryuko's nipples. Ryuko moaned her approval, her fingers working more diligently in response.

Ryuko could feel Satsuki shuddering beneath her, her climax fast approaching. So she slid her fingers down, resting them against Satsuki's entrance. She locked eyes with Satsuki before speaking.

"Is it ok?" instead of responding, Satsuki reached down the length of her own body and guided Ryuko's fingers inside of her. The action caused them both to gasp. Ryuko felt her head swim at the sensation but continued on. Her digits searching for a brief moment, only thoroughly working when she elicited a choked sob of satisfaction from Satsuki.

It only took a few well-timed thrusts of Ryuko's fingers to push Satsuki over. Her cries of pleasure evoked a primal desire in Ryuko to continue going but she eased off her ministrations when Satsuki's moans turned to feeble whimpers of her name.

They laid motionless together then, save for the idle caressing of thumbs against tender spots. Ryuko was comfortable where she'd ended up, her head nestled under the jut of Satsuki's chin. Her ear pressed firmly to Satsuki's chest so she could hear the pounding of her heart. There was something reassuring about it for Ryuko that she didn't want to admit.

The moment was far too short lived, though. Satsuki curled a finger under Ryuko's chin and pulled her from her resting place to press a kiss against her lips. The action promptly reminded Ryuko of the wetness that had puddled between her thighs.

"Mmm, Matoi." Satsuki murmured against Ryuko's lips, her tone faux demanding.

"Hm?"

"Take your pants off." Ryuko smirked. Pulling away to find a similar playful look on Satsuki.

"You're not gonna take 'em off for me, huh?" she watched as Satsuki stretched, briefly mesmerized by the way her body uncoiled itself.

"Mmm no. I'd rather watch." She pulled herself up against the headboard of the bed, crossing her legs and arms before nodding her chin at Ryuko.

Ryuko pulled herself to her feet, finding her legs a little wobbly when she stood. She turned back to Satsuki and grinned. If Satsuki wanted a show, Ryuko was only happy to oblige.

She kept their gazes locked as she slid her palms opposite directions on her body. One ended its journey at one of her breasts, kneading and pinching the tip. The other ended dipped between her legs. Ryuko gasped as her own dampness, her fingers all too eager to seek out her most sensitive spots.

"I thought I told you to take your pants off. Not pleasure yourself." Ryuko could tell that Satsuki was bluffing. The curl of her toes had been enough of a hint.

"What? I can't do both?" she continued to feel herself up and let out a soft gasp, knowing that the action would only entice Satsuki more.

"You can. I just figured you'd rather have me touch you." Ryuko was out of her pants before Satsuki could state a better reason.

The curl of Satsuki's index finger in Ryuko's direction was as much of an invitation as she needed to get back in bed. She made a point to crawl towards her slowly, sitting in Satsuki's lap when she gestured to the spot.

"Much better." The feeling of Satsuki's hands running up the small of her back had Ryuko shuddering. It hadn't helped with the way that Satsuki's eyes had been devouring her during her attempted strip tease. Her fingers continued to draw idle shapes on Ryuko's back until she could barely stand the touch anymore.

"Get on with it, Kiryuin." A perked eyebrow was the only response that Ryuko got. Satsuki tilted forward, her mouth running along Ryuko's collarbone as her nails scratched gently at her skin. Ryuko wriggled at the actions, her hips grinding against Satsuki's lap in an attempt to pleasure herself.

"I'm feeling generous, Matoi. You should be thankful that I've decided to tease you less mercilessly than you did me." Ryuko flushed at Satsuki's words.

"Look, I just couldn't-" her words were cut short when she felt the pleasurable shock of Satsuki's fingers against her slit. "Oh, fuck."

Ryuko's hips moved themselves, bucking and gyrating against the varying pressure of Satsuki's digits. She hadn't realized how the events prior had affected her. It was as if all of the passion she had pressed down for the sake of pleasing Satsuki was starting to bubble up under her skin.

It was when Satsuki moved her fingers to Ryuko's entrance that she lost her resolve. The feel of her slipping not one but two digits into her caused Ryuko's vision to blur. Not to mention the added bliss of Satsuki's mouth on her breasts. Ryuko shook her head, biting her lip as her body worked itself to its fullest height.

"Sats, I-" her words were cut off as she crested suddenly. She gripped at the headboard and Satsuki's shoulder, desperately trying to reel her consciousness back under control and failing miserably.

Then, just as abruptly as her orgasm, Ryuko was on her back. Staring at the ceiling, the nerves in her fingertips and toes exploding with electricity. She was completely aware that Satsuki's fingers were still inside her. She was also completely aware that there was still an abundance of pressure built up in her core, ready to burst at a moment's notice.

The burst itself came when Ryuko eventually managed to look down, her eyes connecting with the furtive sapphire gaze between her thighs. Ryuko was thrown over the edge at the mere sight and she closed her eyes to ignore the smirk that had settled on Satsuki's face. She was remiss to acknowledge that while her body was still rolling through her orgasm, the potential for another was there. She had a terrible feeling that Satsuki had realized that as well.

Ryuko eventually managed to open her eyes and look down at Satsuki without coming immediately, only to have Satsuki begin using her tongue. The heated feeling of which was enough to press Ryuko over the edge again, her body shaking and breathing coming in gulps.

The feel of Satsuki's fingers curling inside of her and the added effect of her mouth against her hypersensitive clitoris made the waves that Ryuko was riding continue for what seemed like eternity. By the time Satsuki decided to let up, Ryuko was certain that she had passed out multiple times. She was finding air hard to come by and her fingers were stuck in a curled position, death-gripping the sheets beside her. When Satsuki's digits finally left her she curled up on her side, still trying to control the rapid beating of her heart.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck…" Ryuko's mumbled cursing was as much a means to convey her exhaustion as it was to show how impressed she was. _Best sex I've ever had. Hands down._

A warmth at her back told her that Satsuki had decided to join her. "Are you conscious?"

"Barely." Ryuko took a few steadying breaths. She wiggled as Satsuki's arms wrapped around her waist and the sensation of moist kisses graced her shoulder. "I lost count after the second one."

"I counted ten. Though it was hard to tell."

"Ten?!" she only had the energy to exhale the word.

They laid passively together for a long time. Satsuki continued to deliver deliberate pecks to Ryuko's back, even going so far as to kiss up the length of Ryuko's spine from her shoulder blades to her hairline. It was when Satsuki nipped at Ryuko's earlobe that she swatted her away gently.

"Oy, stop that. You're going to turn me on again."

"Is that a bad thing?"

"It is after ten orgasms. Don't think my body can take anymore."

There was another quiet moment. Satsuki nibbled one last time at Ryuko's earlobe in subtle protest before sitting up. Ryuko groaned before being hit suddenly with a revelation.

"Holy shit you're still ready to go, aren't you?"

"Mmm." Ryuko had spent enough time around Satsuki to know the implications of her hum.

Before Ryuko could grab at her, she had already stood from the bed, grabbing a few articles of clothing from a wardrobe.

"I'm going to go take a bath." She paused in the doorway, looking back at where Ryuko was still curled on the bed. Ryuko watched a thoughtful moment pass over Satsuki's features before she tacked on, "You're welcome to join, if you want."

Ryuko chuckled, a smirk pulling across her face as Satsuki disappeared from sight. She shimmied herself out of bed and physically shook the heaviness from her limbs before trotting after Satsuki to the bathroom.

Even after all the times Ryuko had used Satsuki's bathroom, it was still a surprise to walk into the space. It was the shining star of the apartment with gold-plated fixtures and marble accents. Not to mention the jacuzzi-esque bath tub that had been squeezed in.

When Ryuko walked in she paused to stare in enjoyment at Satsuki's ass as she was leaned against the edge of the tub, testing the water from the faucet with her palm. Ryuko wolf-whistled, laughing when Satsuki flipped her off with her free hand.

"That's a first." Ryuko perched herself on the edge of the bathtub, crossing her legs in a feminine manner that was unlike herself.

Satsuki chose not to respond, instead she flicked the excess water off her hand and positioned herself in front of Ryuko. She set her hands at either side of Ryuko's head and perked the side of her mouth before leaning in and capturing Ryuko's lips with her own. The kiss was different from the others they had shared during their previous activities. It was significantly substantial in emotion and Ryuko furled her brow at it, baffled at the gesture. She made to question it but as soon as she opened her mouth to speak, Satsuki slipped her tongue into the space, effectively silencing Ryuko verbally and mentally.

Then Ryuko felt Satsuki's palms against her chest. She barely had enough time to return down from her high before Satsuki shoved her lightly, setting her off balance. Ryuko's arms and legs flailed uncontrollably as she tilted backwards and fell into the tub with far too many theatrics.

The water was steaming and Ryuko inhaled an excess of it. She returned to the surface, coughing out the water in her lungs and gasping for air. Ryuko made to berate Satsuki for her nearly lethal attempt on her life but stopped short as she watched Satsuki release her hair from the bun it had been in. She stepped into the tub afterward, flicking water in Ryuko's direction with her toes.

"You know, you're such an asshole sometimes. I can't believe I'm going to do this." Ryuko shook her head, spraying water across the bathroom while sloshing over to Satsuki. She took Satsuki by the hips and forced her to sit on the edge of the tub while settling between her thighs.

"You hardly seem upset." Fingers worked their way into Ryuko's hair as she growled a little at Satsuki's words. She kissed a few times at the silky skin of Satsuki's inner leg before responding.

"Hard to be upset after the mind-blowing sex I just had." She heard Satsuki snort and took it as a sign to continue.

Her mouth had a short distance to travel and when she reached her destination, Ryuko made a point of running the tip of her tongue teasingly around Satsuki's outer lips. When she pressed against the engorged tissue of Satsuki's bud it elicited a gasp that sounded equal parts surprised and pained. Ryuko looked up, finding Satsuki with one of her hands across her mouth, her eyebrows scrunched together.

"Too sensitive?" Satsuki's mouth was set in a thin line as she motioned with her hand in response. Her index finger and thumb curled until they nearly touched.

Ryuko nodded in understanding, wrapping her arms over Satsuki's thighs so she could spread her labia apart with her fingers. Instead of directing her attention to Satsuki's clitoris, Ryuko chose to run her tongue in a figure-eight. Up and around Satsuki overstimulated nub then down to circle around her entrance. When moisture started to collect, Ryuko hummed her approval and looked up at Satsuki, catching her eyes.

"Why did you clean up, anyways?"

"It was uncomfortable." Ryuko shook her head in confusion, letting out a few tight-lipped raspberries.

"Well, yea, but I would've taken care of it for you. Hell, even the bath would've taken care of it-"

"Could you use your mouth for something that isn't talking?" Ryuko lifted her hands in mock surrender at the harshness in Satsuki's words before returning to her obligations.

It was quite possibly the slowest sexual encounter Ryuko had ever been a part of. She was acutely aware of the reactions she elicited from Satsuki. Everything from gasps of pleasure to the barely audible hissing of pain. She made sure to keep her tongue in check, only running across Satsuki's clitoris when the action didn't seem to cause her discomfort.

Even the use of her fingers was reigned in. Ryuko still lost her mind when she slipped a digit into the silky tunnel but she made sure to concentrate on pressing and curling in different areas. She never focused too long on the same place. It was obvious her patience was paying off when Satsuki began to murmur light profanities under her breath, her nails biting into Ryuko's scalp and shoulders.

"Ahnn-! Ryu- Ryuko!" Satsuki's heels dug into the middle of Ryuko's back as her body vibrated in pleasure. The spring that had been tightening up in Satsuki uncoiled all at once and Ryuko had to hold tightly to her thigh with her free arm to keep Satsuki from slipping off the bathtub's edge. Ryuko grinned snidely when she felt a warmth puddle in the palm of her hand.

"That good, huh?" she remarked, removing her finger gently from Satsuki. When Ryuko moved to lick the viscous liquid from her palm she was greeted with an abrupt slap to the back of her head.

"Do not." Ryuko kept her hand cupped as she looked up to where Satsuki was glaring at her threateningly.

"What? Why not? This is, like, my 'job well done' treat."

"So help me, Ryuko, I will throw you out of this apartment so fast you won't even have your clothes on." For the first time in a long time, Ryuko wasn't certain if Satsuki was bluffing or not. The aggressive tone in her voice had her leaning towards not bluffing.

She lowered her palm into the water and shook it to clean it off, a look of unhappiness on her face. "Man, you're such a fuckin' spoil sport."

"Damn right I am." Satsuki groaned the words as she slipped into the tub, grabbing Ryuko and pulling her close.

The water was still warm despite the time that had passed and regardless of Ryuko's ruined fun, she did relax. It didn't help that Satsuki had taken to massaging firm circles against her neck. Ryuko figured it was her way of apologizing and accepted it wholeheartedly. They stayed like that for a long time until the water got lukewarm, at which point they both decided it was time to get out and dry off.

"Do you have somewhere to be tonight?" after Ryuko had dried her hair and body, she'd returned to splaying out on Satsuki's bed. She watched as Satsuki meticulously dried her own dark locks.

"Nah. Didn't have anything planned but this." Ryuko gestured at the space around her. Satsuki left the room after her words, leaving Ryuko to believe she had said something wrong, before returning with both of their laptops.

"Here." She scooted in close to Ryuko and handed her the computer. "May as well as keep at it."

Ryuko groaned, opening it and starting up their game. "Fine. But you owe me food and a place to sleep."

"Oh, you'll be doing very little sleeping tonight, Ryuko. I can promise that." Ryuko swallowed hard at Satsuki's statement, suddenly aware that she may have signed up for more than she could handle.

"Fuck."

Satsuki just laughed.

Being confused had never been something Ryuko enjoyed. In fact, she was certain she despised it more than most things. So when things started to get confusing between Satsuki and herself, she only had one person to turn too.

"Confusing? What's so confusing about it? You two _are_ girlfriends, after all!"

"Mako. No- I-" Ryuko paused, looking to the side in deep thought about Mako's statement. "I- I don't _think_ we're girlfriends."

Mako urged Ryuko to come into her dorm room. She shut the door behind her and sat down on the edge of Mako's bed, her arms A-framed across her knees.

"Like, yea, we've been uh-" she cleared her throat before continuing, " _fucking_. But it's not like we've had a heart to heart or anything." Mako had bounced until she was positioned next to Ryuko, her chin resting on Ryuko's shoulder.

"But you like her, right?"

"Well, yea. Of course I like her." A blush started to paint Ryuko's face crimson. She attempted to downplay her previous realization to no avail. "I-I guess."

Mako's thoughtful hum reverberated through Ryuko's body. "So what's the problem?"

Ryuko growled, her emotions starting to get the better of her. "I'm just so confused! Yea, the sex is amazing. Probably the best I've ever had. But I just…" She paused, emphasizing her frustration by shaking her fists in front of her body. "We're a few levels out from maxing our characters-"

"Oooh! And you're worried she won't want to see you anymore once you're done!" Mako's candid exclamation of Ryuko's worries had her immediately regretting the conversation.

Ryuko just sighed, her shoulders slumping from the weight of her feelings.

"Oh man! Oh man, Ryuko! You're in love with Satsuki, aren't you?!" every hair on Ryuko's body stood on end. She turned, grabbing Mako by the mouth, attempting to silence the torrent of words that were spilling from her lips.

"No! Absolutely not!"

"Ff- mnoo awre!" Mako managed to continue talking past Ryuko's fingers. Realizing that it was futile to quiet her completely, Ryuko shoved her away and watched as Mako nearly rolled off the mattress. "Holy shit, you are!"

Ryuko's hands became her best friends at that point, allowing her to hide her face behind them.

"Look! Ryuko! It's not that big of a deal!" she could feel Mako's fingers trying to pry her palms from her face. "It's so obvious that Satsuki feels the same way about you!"

She dropped her hand-shield to pin Mako with a disbelieving look. "I really doubt that, Mako."

"I can prove it!"

"How?"

"Just answer some questions, ok?" Mako jumped off the bed and moved in front of Ryuko, sitting between her legs and looking up at her with brown doe-eyes.

"Fuck. Fine." Ryuko rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Ok. Does she ever kiss you?"

"Mako, people kiss during sex all the time-"

"That's not what I mean! Does she kiss you outside of that?"

Ryuko had to pause and actually think about it. Her memories were fairly hazy about the last few encounters Satsuki and her had recently had during the week since it all started. "Yea. I guess so. But that doesn't prove anything."

"It's the first step in proving something! Now does she ever touch you for no apparent reason?"

Ryuko was about to retort with a curt 'no' before recalling Satsuki's recent behavior. She recalled moments during which Satsuki seemed to press against her, gentle brushes of their shoulders during their time on the couch and fingers left sitting too long at the nape of her neck. "Erh-"

"Thought so! Wait-" Mako seemed to suddenly recall something. "Have you been spending the night at her house?!"

Despite herself, Ryuko's jaw unhinged at the question and Mako's mouth followed suit.

"I knew it! You two are so much alike!" Ryuko's brow furled.

"What? No we aren't!"

"Yea-huh!" Mako clamped Ryuko's mouth shut with her hands to keep her from interrupting. "Did it ever occur to you that Satsuki's probably just as bad at expressing her feelings as you are?" Ryuko narrowed her eyes at Mako. "No, no! Listen! It's true! You're both awful at being honest!"

Once she had managed to get Mako's sweaty palms off her face, Ryuko growled her response. "What does it matter?!"

"It matters a whole lot!" the end of Mako's sentence petered out as she lost the energy to argue. "You don't have to believe me, Ryuko. But I think now that we've had this talk, you're going to start realizing I'm right."

"Bullshit." Ryuko stood up, knocking Mako back a little as she did. She leaned down and picked her slight frame from the ground. "I'm going to go over to Satsuki's right now and prove you wrong."

Ryuko left Mako's dorm room after that, only stopping to grab her backpack from her own room before heading straight for Satsuki's apartment.

"Ryuko. You're early." Satsuki stepped to the side, letting Ryuko slip past her and into the apartment.

"Ah, yea, sorry." She turned back briefly, shooting Satsuki a genuinely apologetic smile.

"No." Satsuki took a step towards her, reaching out and cupping one of Ryuko's cheeks before brushing their lips together ever so slightly. "It's fine."

The moment caught Ryuko off guard, causing her heart to jump into her throat. It reminded her of all the moments after Sunday that Ryuko had stepped into that apartment, receiving the same type of kiss on every occasion. She shook her head, both to clear it of her added anxiety and Mako's words. Her cheeks were starting to burn from the implications of the situation.

"Are you alright?" she glanced up at Satsuki, whose face was twisted into one of concern.

"Ah, yea. I'm good." She continued her awkward shuffle past Satsuki, a lopsided grin on her face. Things were already starting to seem different and Ryuko internally cursed Mako for even bringing it up.

It would have seemed like any other day, and truthfully at the core of it, it was. They started up their laptops, turned the TV on for background noise, and sat around playing. No different than what they had done for months. The only difference, Ryuko noticed, was the eerie calm between them and the affectionate undertones to Satsuki's conduct.

It was so subtle that Ryuko wasn't surprised she hadn't noticed before. The only thing that wasn't indirect was the kissing, which happened far more often than Ryuko had previously thought.

"That was a good kill." Satsuki remarked after Ryuko had taken a player down. If her words of praise hadn't been enough to embarrass Ryuko, the feel of Satsuki's lips against her cheek did the trick.

"Erh, Satsuki."

"Hmm?"

"You've, uh." Ryuko's words stopped briefly as she struck another player down. "You've been kissing me a lot lately."

She glanced over to witness bewilderment on Satsuki's face. Ryuko wasn't certain if it had been sarcastic in nature. "No."

"Uh. Yea."

"No. I haven't." The seriousness in Satsuki's voice was threatening and Ryuko figured it was smart to stop while she was ahead.

A few minutes passed as they continued to wreak havoc in-game. It was when Ryuko managed to slay another character right before they could take Satsuki out that she decided to speak again.

"Thank you."

"No prob-" the feel of Satsuki's mouth against her shoulder made her halt. Which in turn caused Satsuki to stay where she was, frozen in realization. She cleared her throat while drawing back to a sitting position.

"Apologies, Matoi." Ryuko cringed at the formality, discerning that her previous comment had caused a hiccup in their little world.

"Nah. Uh." She knew she needed to do something. So Ryuko elected for reaching towards Satsuki, grabbing her hand in hers. She tugged it towards her, turning her head to hide the glow of her face while brushing her lips against Satsuki's knuckles. "It's fine. I swear."

The feeling of Ryuko's hand being squeezed signaled to her that it was alright to let go. "You're going to die."

"Wha-" Ryuko looked back at her screen in time to watch her health plummet. When she died she nearly punched through the keyboard. "Fuck!"

Satsuki let out an amused snort and Ryuko glared at her.

"You thought that was funny, huh?" she leaned forward, depositing her laptop on the table in front of them.

"Maybe." Satsuki emphasized the single word with the shrug of her shoulders, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Ryuko took the laptop from Satsuki's lap and closed it, setting it aside.

"Oh yea? Let's see how funny you think it is when I get done with you."

They didn't manage to get back to their game for the rest of that night.

"Matoi." Satsuki's voice woke Ryuko from her dozing.

"I'm up, I'm up." She yawned, stretching her arms above her head before looking around the lecture hall. Everyone was gone.

"Were you asleep the whole time?" there was a measured amount of scorn in Satsuki's voice that caused Ryuko to chuckle sheepishly.

"Nah, of course not."

"Alright." Satsuki tilted her portfolio, flipping through pages of her notepad before stopping at one in particular. "Can you tell me the act that created free trade between Canada, the United States, and Mexico?"

Ryuko balked at the question.

"You're a horrid liar." She closed her portfolio forcefully, pinning Ryuko with her eyes. Ryuko leaned back instinctively, the memory of Nonon boxing her ear flashing in her mind's eye.

"Aaah, so I've been told." Ryuko scratched at her neck, regret seeping in at the disappointment in Satsuki's glare. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize to me, apologize to your GPA."

"My GPA doesn't need an apology, it needs a funeral service." The silence that followed after Ryuko's quip was only broken by an exhausted sigh from Satsuki.

"Do you need help studying for the final?" the question caused Ryuko to flush. _Shit, Satsuki even cares about my grades. We really must be in deep._

"Ah. I guess? You sure you've got time for that? I know you've been really busy-"

"Yes." Satsuki cut her off before sliding her hand into her pant suit pocket. "I have obligations tonight, though."

Ryuko's mood plummeted at that. Usually they spent time together after their class, but Satsuki's work had been demanding more from her. The last few lectures had ended in the same sort of news. All Ryuko could manage was a neutral, "Oh."

Her eyes angled down at her lap, becoming thoroughly interested in watching her fingers pick at hangnails. Ryuko only looked up again when she heard the sound of a faint metallic click. On the table between them was a key with Satsuki's fingers pressed flat against it. When she looked up, Ryuko caught the faintest of blushes on Satsuki's cheeks.

As Ryuko reached out, Satsuki's own hand retreated.

"I'll be home late. There should still be time for studying, though. I figure you could use a quiet environment to concentrate instead of your dormitory room." Despite the factual emphasis, Satsuki's tone betrayed endearment.

"You sure you don't need this?" Ryuko picked up the key and waggled it.

"No. I can pick up my spare from the front desk." A faint hum was Ryuko's only response, her voice lost in bashfulness. "I have to go. Try not to make a mess."

"Wreck the place. Got it." Satsuki rolled her eyes before exiting the room, leaving Ryuko to stare at the key in her fingers, suddenly aware of the gravity behind the object.

The atmosphere of Satsuki's apartment was blatantly different. Painfully silent and harboring a dreary sense of isolation. It struck Ryuko that, although Satsuki had stated her appreciation of the place, that maybe the oppressive ambience had been a portion of the reason for her insisting that Ryuko join her on so many occasions.

"Geez, Sats. You sure know how to make a place feel homely." Her voice echoed and a chill ran down her spine. Ryuko was ashamed to admit later that she had to turn on the television to calm her nerves.

She started off in the living room. Pulling out her laptop and opening her notes for one of her classes. There was something about being alone that convinced her it was about time that she buckled down on her work. After all, her finals were only a few days out. _Couldn't hurt to get a head start._

The juggling Ryuko did for two hours was commendable. She managed to shift through each of her five courses, reading her notes and touching on a few points but never doing more than that. As soon as she felt herself getting bored with one thing, her mind would drift to something else. At one point, Ryuko even found herself peeking through the blinds in the living room, scanning the windows of the adjacent apartment building for anything interesting at all.

"This fuckin' blows." Looking up, she glanced at the clock. _Only eight._

It was then and there that Ryuko figured that if she had the opportunity to do so with no consequences, she was going to snoop. All moral obligations unbridled, Ryuko got up from her spot on the couch and moved down the hallway to the bathroom.

"Alright. Let's get this show on the road." Ryuko kneeled down in front of the sink, her fingertips hesitating at the pulls to the cupboards. "And behind door number one…"

She wrenched them open, revealing the lack luster sight of extra toilet paper and shampoo bottles. When she leaned side to side she spotted a cubby behind the stacks of tissue. Carefully removing them, she opened the plastic container, again a bit disappointed. All she found as she scooted the contents around were medical supplies: bandages, antiseptic, and ointments. Checking the other compartments in the bathroom continued to offer up the same level of excitement.

"Towels, towels, tampons…" Ryuko ruffled her already messy hair. "Time to move onto the main course, I guess."

She returned everything to where it had been prior before padding her way down the hall to Satsuki's bedroom. Ryuko cracked her knuckles and smirked.

"Alright. If I were hiding things I didn't want me to see, where would I put them?" Ryuko rubbed her palms together, scrutinizing different aspects of the room warily.

Eventually she decided on the bed first, flinging herself on to it and relaxing a moment before dragging herself to the edge on her belly. Pulling out her phone, Ryuko turned the flashlight function on before hanging over the edge and illuminating the darkness under the mattress.

"Oh, that's not suspicious at all, Satsuki." The space was devoid of anything except for a singular cardboard box. Ryuko pulled it out, sitting up with it in her lap.

It had already been opened, the top neatly sliced where the tape had sealed it for travel. Brown dunnage was peeking out through its wound. Ryuko worked meticulously, making sure to disturb as little of the package as possible while still getting at its contents. She noted the company on the return address as she worked. _Haven't I seen that name somewhere?_

"No fuckin' way." Ryuko gawked at what she pulled from the bottom of the box.

She _had_ seen the companies name before. Specifically in relation to an internet post about sex toys. What she had in her hands was a specially built strap-on harness and, when Ryuko glanced back at the container, she noticed a matching dildo to complete the set. She made sure to file the information away in the back of her mind that the package and its contents seemed to be brand new. Ryuko snickered the entire time she returned the box to its previous state, slipping it back under the bed and laying back with a grin plastered on her face.

Up until that point she had been elated at the find and its connotation, but after a moment of listening to the still of the apartment around her, Ryuko's mood thoroughly soured. She was genuinely lonely without Satsuki's presence. On top of that, the strap-on had her mind reeling with daydreams that were leaving her wishing Satsuki was there for anything but studying.

"Dammit Satsuki, what are you doing to me?" she rolled onto her stomach and buried her face into a nearby pillow.

 _Fuck her for smelling so good, too._ Ryuko glided her hands across the fabric of the pillowcase, inhaling deeply. It was floral and crisp. Always a proper way to cleanse her palate.

Before Ryuko could begin to rationalize her way out of it, her hips had started to grind against the firmness of the mattress below her. With her eyes closed, the pillow beneath her was as good a Satsuki as the real thing. She peppered kisses across it, her own hands becoming a conduit for the daydream she was rapidly conceiving behind her eyelids.

Fingers slid up and down her sides, finding all the spots that made her squirm in anticipation for the events to come. She imagined breath on her ear and neck, the pierce of teeth against the rise of her collarbone. Ryuko bit down on the pillow beneath her, reigning in a stifled moan as fingertips grazed against the sensitive nerves of her pert nipples.

It was when she felt a feather-light touch at her thigh that Ryuko thanked whatever higher power had convinced her to wear a skirt that day. She felt the hem of it ride up, the fiery touch of fingers lingering for what seemed like forever as they skimmed closer and closer to-

"Ssssshiiit." Ryuko could barely contain the expletive that hissed passed her teeth. The feeling of deft fingertips pressing against her center had been akin to an electric shock. As they moved against her through the sheer fabric of her panties, Ryuko became acutely aware of how wet she had gotten.

Her toes pressed hard into the mattress beneath her, hoping to gain some traction so her hips could get more room to move against the invading digits. The other hand was working furiously at her chest, groping and pinching in hectic movements. When a few inquisitive fingers found their way inside of her body, Ryuko gasped loudly. She pressed her face further into the pillow to muffle her cries as they began to pump against a tender spot within her. Every time they brushed past it, her body shook uncontrollably.

"Sats- Satsuki! Fuck! That feels so good…" she didn't care anymore to reign in her words. Hearing them tumble out of her mouth just served to excite her further, drawing her closer and closer to her pinnacle of desire. As she mounted it, her body curled in on itself and shuddered violently, releasing all of the pressure that had built up in her at once.

She panted, coming back down from her momentary high and withdrawing from the scene that had been playing out in her mind. It was as she began to pull her fingers out that she heard the sound of someone clearing their throat behind her.

"Done?"

Ryuko twisted her head to the side, observing Satsuki with her shoulder pressed against the doorframe and her legs crossed. The flush on Ryuko's face only served to fuel the ever growing perk of Satsuki's lips. Ryuko moved awkwardly, attempting to hurriedly regain her composure while fighting the fatigue in her limbs.

"Go wash your hands. We still have studying to do, Matoi." Ryuko was starting to hate how Satsuki's drawl of her last name had picked up the added effect of rousing a fire in her loins. She got up and made a path for the bathroom, pausing to grin up at Satsuki.

"Sure you don't wanna clean me up?" Ryuko mocked, raising her palm and wiggling the still slick coated fingers in Satsuki's face.

She had figured that her tease would go unrequited but as she slipped past Satsuki's form, fingers wrapped around her wrist. Before she could fully comprehend what was happening, Satsuki had sucked the offending appendages into her mouth. Ryuko's knees nearly gave out as she felt her tongue swirl around them, removing the rest of her juices before letting the digits exit her mouth.

As Ryuko felt her legs begin to shudder dangerously, Satsuki wrapped steady arms around her, dragging them both into a lengthy kiss that used an unorthodox amount of tongue. Ryuko couldn't believe how bewitchingly arousing the mix of her own taste and that of Satsuki's saliva was. _Oh fuck, she is going to be the literal death of me._

When they broke apart Satsuki shoved her playfully back into the room. "Go sit down in the computer chair. We're still studying tonight."

She left after saying that, returning with Ryuko's laptop and a chair from the kitchen table. Satsuki set herself up beside Ryuko, removing her blazer and hanging it over the back of her chair. She booted up her desktop computer as Ryuko opened her laptop.

"Oh, so you did do some studying?" Satsuki mused as she noticed the opened notes on Ryuko's laptop screen.

"What? You thought I just fucked myself this entire time?"

"It would hardly surprise me."

"How long were you standing there, by the way?"

"Long enough." Ryuko growled at the sinister way Satsuki let those words loose.

"Hey. It was all your fuckin' fault anyways, Ms. 'I keep a strap-on unde'-" she metaphorically jammed her own foot down her throat. Satsuki rose a singular eyebrow.

"Oh? So on top of being a pervert you're tacking on invading people's privacy as well?"

Ryuko groaned, her scorching face becoming a going-concern. "Can- fuck. Can we just fuckin' study, already?"

"Glad you agree."

So they set out together on a mystical adventure to get Ryuko's knowledge squared away for her final. Except the journey was far less fantastical than Ryuko had hoped for. Satsuki's ideals for studying included randomized flash cards and memorization techniques. It was dull and dry, and by the time four hours had crept away, Ryuko was about to spoon her own eyes out.

"Good. Just remember to not mix up the one-word difference between the definition of call and put options. Now, next question-"

"Oh man. Sats, please. I can't take this shit anymore." Ryuko flopped across Satsuki's lap, pretending to sob and only realizing a few seconds in that it wasn't pretend-crying, anymore.

"Fine. We'll stop for the night-" Ryuko began to sit up. "But only on one condition."

She plopped back down, groaning into the crevice between Satsuki's legs. "Only one this time?"

"Only one."

"Shit, fuck, fine. What is it this time?"

"You have to pass a pop quiz." Sobbing resumed at Satsuki's words. "Oh, suck it up, Matoi."

"How many questions is it?" Ryuko sniffled, hoping to get some sympathy.

"Ten. That's it."

"How many tries do I get?" Satsuki paused. Ryuko looked up to find her mulling over the question.

"As many as you need to get them right. It would be unfair otherwise."

"Unfair?" sitting back up fully, Ryuko scrunched her face up, mentally asking Satsuki if what she was thinking was what Satsuki was thinking.

It was so typical Satsuki to not even answer, instead using her actions as a means to convey what she had in mind. Ryuko didn't even fend her off as she moved in, pressing their lips together and causing heat to bloom in her gut. She was too wanton for it. She had been ever since she'd found out that Satsuki had watched her fap-session. Not to mention the kiss she had dealt her earlier. Ryuko was figuratively foaming at the mouth for attention.

After a moment of letting their mouths rediscover each other's features, Satsuki pulled back and stood. She grabbed Ryuko by the collar of her shirt and dragged her to the bed, being less than careful with how she flung her onto it. Ryuko was tickled-pink at the action.

"First question." Satsuki was kneeling down next to the bed, her arm hooking under it to reach for the box Ryuko knew was hidden there. "What is the uncertainty in predicting how a variety of different factors will affect an investment in a country?"

Ryuko didn't know whether to be excited or downtrodden but she thought about the question nonetheless. She could figure what would happen if she didn't play along with Satsuki's game. "Uh… that was um…" she wracked her brain, certain that if she squeezed her eyes tight enough she would see the right flash card. "... Country risk?"

An eyebrow perked it's acknowledgement of Ryuko's answer. She watched Satsuki fully retrieve the package and begin to withdraw its contents. "Good."

Ryuko was writhing as she watched Satsuki undress herself. Slender fingers worked at dress shirt buttons, all the way down, until Satsuki slipped out of her top. She got to watch as Satsuki showed off her flexibility, her arms fluidly bending behind her to unclip her bra and remove it. Her pants came next and Satsuki turned nonchalantly, letting Ryuko watch as the top of the fabric strained to free the girth of Satsuki's rump.

"You've really got the nicest ass, Satsuki." Ryuko eyed the delicate white lace of Satsuki's underwear as it followed suit with her pants. Her trepidation coming to life with renewed vigor as Satsuki stepped in to the harness.

"Second question." Satsuki spoke as she moved back towards Ryuko, dildo in hand. "What is the term used for whether a firm has growth or value and how this firm characteristic provides an estimate of the cost of equity?"

Ryuko shuddered as Satsuki's fingers joined hers in helping unbutton and remove her own shirt. She almost forgot to answer entirely when Satsuki began to trace her index finger along the waistband of her skirt. "That's uh, ah-" the feel of Satsuki's teeth nipping her earlobe caused her to hesitate momentarily, "its value factor."

"Mmmhm." Satsuki had vacated her hand's contents in favor of using it to pull Ryuko into her lap. She removed Ryuko's bra, making sure to run the palms of her hands roughly over the swell of Ryuko's breasts.

"Aaahhn. So that harness just wears like underwear, huh?" Ryuko attempted to clear her mind with idle chit chat. The tip of Satsuki's nose was tracing tight circles around her nipples while her hands began to help her out of her skirt and panties.

"Yes. Truthfully, Nonon recommended it. I have never been a fan of the typical harnesses."

Ryuko narrowed her eyes, pushing Satsuki away abruptly only to find a menacing grin on her face. "You're joking."

"And if I'm not?"

"I'd rather not know. Aren't there more questions that need to be answered?" Satsuki leaned back in, ignoring the distressed tone in Ryuko's voice. Her mouth hovered tentatively over one of Ryuko's nipples.

"Third question. What is the term for a group of banks that make a loan to a firm?" the closeness of Satsuki's mouth had Ryuko's hips swaying.

"Uuuuuh…" she hated to admit that she didn't know the answer. "Was that money center banks?"

Satsuki leaned back at her answer, her hands holding Ryuko still as she protested.

"Fuck! Ok, give me a second." Setting her hands on Satsuki's shoulders, Ryuko leaned back, her eyes angled at the ceiling in thought. "Err, a syndicate?"

"Good girl."

The praise made Ryuko squirm just as much as the feel of Satsuki's lips encompassing one of her nipples. She gasped, burying her fingers into Satsuki's hair.

"Fourth question." Satsuki pushed Ryuko out of her lap, curling around Ryuko as the big spoon while reaching over to the bedside table and wrenching open a drawer. "Debt contracts sold by firms that are domiciled in a country in the home currency?"

"That's domestic bonds. I remember that one." Looking over her shoulder just in time, Ryuko watched as Satsuki flicked open the top of a lubricant bottle. She smirked at Ryuko before kissing her cheek.

"Yes. You want to take care of this?" Satsuki passed her the vial while situating the toy into the harness. Ryuko smirked while pouring a bit of the liquid into her palm. When they had both finished, Satsuki locked eyes with Ryuko and watched as she reached down, smearing the lube across the silicone member.

"Don't lose your cool, Satsuki. There's six more questions to go." Ryuko snickered, watching as Satsuki's throat bobbed with a labored swallow. She could swear she saw a brief glint of regret in Satsuki's eyes. "You know, we don't _have_ to do this pop quiz thing.

"Says the slacker. Fifth question." The feeling of Satsuki pressing in against her back had Ryuko biting her bottom lip. She opened her legs, allowing the member to slide unhindered against her warmth. Ryuko had to bury her teeth into her thumb to keep from letting out a guttural moan. "Large global banks are called what?"

A palm slid up the plane of Ryuko's belly, languid and cool. She let her head fall back against Satsuki's shoulder when the wandering fingertips found their way to a stiff nipple. "Oooooh fuck. Money centers?"

"See? You knew the difference. Just concentrate."

"Please. Satsuki. Don't fucking patronize me when you're doing-" she was interrupted mid-sentence as Satsuki ground her hips a bit, causing the dildo to slip against Ryuko's clitoris. "- _that_."

"Sixth question. What's the small commitment fee needed to purchase a futures contract?"

"The margin call?" teeth sunk into area between Ryuko's shoulder and neck, causing her to gasp and pull at Satsuki's bangs in retaliation. "Ah! Fuck! Guess I need to be wrong more often…"

"The answer is simpler than that." Satsuki smoothed her tongue over the swollen spot she had created. Her fingers were continuing to pinch and roll Ryuko's nipple while her hips moved slowly and fluidly.

Ryuko was going to lose her mind at the excruciating pace Satsuki was keeping at. "Hnn- the margin?"

"Good. Seventh question. What does ERP stand for?"

"Enterprise resource planning. Could you hurry it up, Sats? I'm dying." Ryuko mewled the last few words, clutching at Satsuki's wrist and hair. She was grinding herself against the member in time with the rocking of Satsuki's hips, hoping to get off from the sensation and failing.

"Eighth question." Satsuki pressed Ryuko on to her back and moved with a sense of urgency that mirrored Ryuko's own desires. She settled between Ryuko's legs, taking a knee in each hand and pressing them into Ryuko's chest. When Satsuki leaned over to capture her lips in a passionate kiss, Ryuko could feel the tip of the toy threatening to slip inside her. Before she could move her hips up to accept it, Satsuki pulled back. "Term for a company that only completes product design and outsources all other production process functions?"

Losing all sense of decency, Ryuko whined her protest and made grabby hands at Satsuki. For a second it looked like Satsuki was going to cave before shaking her head in rebuke, waiting for Ryuko's answer. "Hollow Corporation?"

Satsuki nodded before lowering her eyes to the area between Ryuko's thighs, reaching down and positioning the head of the silicone member against her entrance. "Ninth question." She paused as she pushed against Ryuko, eliciting a garble of strangled profanities. Ryuko curled her fingers against Satsuki's shoulder blades, leaving behind pink-hued lines. "What is the system that businesses use to produce products?"

She cursed Satsuki internally, and externally, all while digging her heels into Satsuki's rump in an attempt to get her to move her hips. "Manufacu- wait, no, it's a production system. Now fuckin' move, Kiryuin!"

It was torturous for Ryuko. Satsuki made sure to watch her, slowing or stopping completely whenever it seemed that she was close to pushing Ryuko over the edge. The movements never stopped completely, though, and Ryuko was left to stay in sexual limbo. By the time Satsuki managed to ask the last question, she had been reduced to a blubbering mess.

"Please- Satsuki, fuckin' please!"

"Last one's easy. I promise." Satsuki was showing physical signs of giving out. Her breath was coming in ragged breaths as she leaned over and spoke into Ryuko's ear. "What's the act that created free trade- mnh... between Canada, the United States, and Mexico?"

Ryuko laughed hysterically, elated to know the pop quiz was one answer away from being done. "Fucking NAFTA! North American Free Trade Agreement! Now fuckin' fuck me!"

Satsuki was all too eager to grant Ryuko's wishes. She pumped into Ryuko, her pace threefold faster than before. Ryuko wrapped her arms around Satsuki's neck, holding her close as she hopped the diminutive gap to her orgasm.

It was another set of rolling orgasms as Ryuko was pressed over the edge more times than she cared to count. The mixed sounds of sweat-slicked skin against skin and unbridled screams fueled her potential over and over again as Satsuki grunted her own pleasure against the hollow of Ryuko's throat. She couldn't think. Didn't care to after that point. Ryuko wanted more. More of the pulses of Satsuki's pelvis against her clitoris, more of the friction of the member inside of her, more of the feel of Satsuki's skin against her own… her heart could've stopped and Ryuko knew she'd die happy in that instant.

After a lengthy portion of time, or at least Ryuko felt it had been lengthy, Satsuki finally gave out on top of her. Their bodies shook and throbbed against one another until they had both managed to recover just slightly.

"Mnn- ah! Shit!" Ryuko exclaimed as Satsuki managed to peel herself away from Ryuko and pull the dildo from her center.

"Never. Again." Turning her head, Ryuko watched at Satsuki removed the harness and laid still for a bit. She couldn't help but let out a labored snicker at the sight.

"Wore yourself out, huh? I didn't even get to do anything to you yet."

"That won't be necessary." Satsuki's fingers retrieved a slim vibrating object from the harness and switched it off. Her eyelids were starting to sluggishly flutter as Ryuko found the last bit of energy within herself to curl against Satsuki's side.

Neither of them had the strength to fend off sleep that night.

Finals had passed and thanks to Satsuki's continuous effort on Ryuko's part, she had managed to pull through with decent grades on her exams. It had taken some stress off Ryuko but, as unfair as life often was, it was quickly replaced. Ryuko mulled over her thoughts, her back against a wall and a beer in her hand at Mako's end of the semester party.

The issue of Kiryuin Satsuki had finally come to a head for her. Graduation was on the horizon and Ryuko couldn't shake the overwhelming dread that loomed at the back of her mind. Satsuki would be leaving college. Going on to accomplish whatever goal it was that she had in mind, which Ryuko had surmised must have been huge if she still had chosen to not indulge Ryuko in telling her. She was happy for Satsuki. Incredibly so. So the selfish want she held in her heart continued to nag at her, even finding ways to seep into her dreams.

She couldn't remember the last time she had slept properly. Even when she was with Satsuki it was endless tossing and turning. The party had become a perfect opportunity for her to test if drinking heavily could solve her sleeping problems or not.

"Hey Ryuko, need another drink?" a couple of faceless men sidled up next to her, offering her a cup. She snorted her distaste at the attempt.

"Nah. I can get my own." At saying that, she leaned over and grabbed an entire bottle of whiskey off the table and twisted it open, leaning back and drinking back a forth of it before stopping. The couple that had approached her took a wary step back, continuing a previous conversation.

"No, man, I'm being serious about this."

"Dude, I've never seen that Kiryuin girl with anyone. Ever." Ryuko paused mid-swig, her attention caught.

"So? Just means that she's probably free, right?" she set the bottle of whiskey down, crossing her arms over her chest. When she squeezed her fists together her fingers were slightly numb. It was obvious that the mixture of alcoholic beverages had begun to take an effect.

"I don't know what you see in her. She's a total ice queen."

"Dude! Doesn't matter! She's gotta rack on her like-"

"Oy!" Ryuko shouted her distaste at the course of their conversation topic. She took a threatening step forward, causing the two men to set their posture defensively. "Neither of you has any right to talk about Kiryuin Satsuki that way."

"And you do?" one of them piped up. Ryuko's top lip pulled up as she snarled her response.

"I would _never_ speak about her like that." The two in front of her burst into hysterics and Ryuko was left stewing in her rage.

"Oh man! That's rich comin' from you Ryuko, yah womanizer!" the shove Ryuko received to her shoulder was playful in nature. Unfortunately for her _friends_ , it had been enough to crumble the sleep-deprived barrier Ryuko had placed in front of her bottled up emotions.

She faux laughed, looking as amused as possible before reeling her arm back and slamming her fist into the side of one of their faces. It was when she was dealt the same in return, stumbling back a few paces and spitting blood on the floor that Ryuko's vision blurred over. It was a familiar feeling that she traced back to her childhood. The moment being similar in a few regards. Her quelled emotions, the sleep deprivation…

It was when she had sunk into the blackness that Ryuko remembered the outcome of that fight. She'd come to afterwards to find the other person a bloody pulp on the ground. It was a mystery how she hadn't been dealt any punishment at all. She always figured it had something to do with the Mankanshoku's.

 _Hah, let's hope that doesn't happen this time, too._ Floating in that twilight was oddly comforting. There was nothing to worry about. Nothing to be afraid of, or anxious for. Time didn't matter. Ryuko mulled over the philosophical idea that time was just a construct thought up by man, anyways. She didn't need it where she was. Hell, she didn't even need anyone in that space, not even Sats-

A haloed light pierced through the darkness and Ryuko squinted against it, attempting to raise one of her hands to block it out. It was obnoxiously fluorescent, giving off a sterile feeling that had Ryuko's gut squirming.

"Hnn-" the sound of her own voice in her ears was weaker than usual. She tried to push back, the feeling in her limbs starting to come back as the light got progressively closer.

"Ry… Ryu…" she could hear her name being called faintly. Ryuko shook her head, the action languid and sloppy.

"Mako- buddy- what did I say about hospitals?" she had discerned the smell of rubbing alcohol, pulling pieces of her environment into scope even before her vision had returned. The voice continued to recite her name, growing more distinct each time. "Yea, that's right. Not to take me to one."

"Ryuko! Matoi!" her brow furled that time. Ryuko knew that voice.

"Sats?" Ryuko pinched her eyes closed and blinked them back open, her vision focusing on the gleam of cobalt eyes. "What are you doing at the hospital?"

"You're not at a hospital. Though you probably should be." Her eyes lolled uncontrollably for a few moments before she managed to drag herself back into consciousness. She could feel Satsuki's palms at either side of her face, holding her steady. She spoke with a firm tone that was utterly betrayed with a crack of worry. "Ryuko."

"Wha?" the tongue in her mouth was still cottony from the booze.

"Are you conscious?" Ryuko watched Satsuki's eyes scrutinize the details of her face. It only bothered her when Satsuki's gaze laid far too long on a spot above her left eye.

"Uh… yea. I'm here now. Wherever I am?" she attempted to look around but Satsuki held her firmly, keeping her from rotating her neck. Her eyes were still glued to the spot on Ryuko's forehead, observing it thoroughly.

"My bathroom. Thankfully it seems that you don't have a concussion."

"Whaaait. Wait. I'm at your apartment? Howss-" she hissed when Satsuki let go of one side of her head to retrieve a damp cotton ball and pressed it softly to her scalp. "How did I get here?"

"I was hoping you'd know that." The pain ceased the swimming in Ryuko's head briefly. She didn't know which sensation she preferred more.

"Nope. No idea." Satsuki tapped the cotton ball at a few other places on Ryuko's face before throwing it to the ground where it joined a pile of its bloodied brethren.

"Ryuko." Satsuki addressed her, this time leveling their gazes together again. Ryuko didn't care much for the panicked tears that were glinting at the corners of Satsuki's eyes. "What happened?"

"Aaah…" Ryuko tilted her head back, her mouth open in thought as she recalled the events before the darkness. "Ahaha, it was nothing, Sats. Just a dumb fight." The words tumbled out of her mouth a bit garbled, a side-effect of the dense knot she could feel on her jaw. The way Satsuki's mouth set in a thin line told Ryuko that she was coming dangerously close to making the situation worse.

"I won't ask what the fight was about." Satsuki's words came as a surprise to Ryuko. "I figure if you have a reason for not telling me than…" she let out her breath mid-sentence, seemingly unhappy with its presence in her lungs. "Then I can trust that."

Ryuko tried to furl her brow, only stopping when she could feel liquid dribbling down her temple. Satsuki's eyes followed the course of it over Ryuko's face, her throat constricting as she swallowed. Before Satsuki could move to grab another cotton ball, Ryuko had reached out and captured her hands. "Satsuki."

"Ryu-"

"No, please. Just listen to me for a bit, ok?" Satsuki looked like she was about to protest but stopped short. "I just- I just really need to know something."

The pounding of Ryuko's heart was adorned with sharp ticks and she could feel the haze in her mind retreating. Her fingers fiddled across Satsuki's knuckles as she attempted to formulate the words she had been meaning to get across for weeks.

"Why can't you be honest with me?" she accidentally furled her brow again and felt the same dripping sensation on her cheek. Satsuki blinked, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Ryuko. I have been honest with you. Kiryui-"

"Yea, yea. _Kiryuin Satsuki never lies_. But there's a huge difference between lying and being dishonest, Sats." Ryuko could tell that what she was saying wasn't getting across to Satsuki. She let out a labored breath, a slight smile pulling at the edges of her mouth. "Do you know when I realized I had fallen in love with you?"

Satsuki's eyes widened slightly but she stayed quiet, knowing Ryuko's question was rhetorical.

"It was the night that we beer pong dueled and you got drunk. And we were laying in my bed and I held you the entire night. Be damned if I could sleep, though." Ryuko started laughing, a defense mechanism to the stinging she could feel at the corners of her eyes. She glanced up and sniffed, squashing the urge down. "Because I was too busy listening to you breathe. I was so afraid that if I fell asleep that I'd wake up and you wouldn't be moving anymore and that it'd be all my fault." She looked back at Satsuki, her face still plastered with a fake grin. "So seriously, Satsuki. Why is it you can't be honest with me?"

There was a moment where Ryuko didn't think Satsuki was ever going to respond. She leaned back on her feet, Ryuko's hands still clamped around hers as she straightened her back. "Do you remember that time when you flicked that eraser at me?"

"Oh shi- yea." Ryuko had to suppress the giggles that were threatening to rumble in her chest.

"Then." Satsuki stepped closer, causing their knees to bump together. "That was when."

"Why?" Ryuko was smirking. She remembered to keep her eyebrows still only after she felt more heat trickling down her face.

"Despite being in a situation with me where I made it apparent how short your life was..." Satsuki twitched an eyebrow meaningfully. "You stayed when any other person would have ran."

"Guess it pays off to be less than sane at times." Satsuki shook her head, leaning at the waist and pressing her lips against Ryuko's before pulling back in disgust.

"You taste like blood." Ryuko grinned at her words and Satsuki's grimace deepened. "And your teeth are stained with it." She pulled away from Ryuko to rummage through the bin of medical supplies. "I'm going to have to liquid stitch the cut on your forehead closed."

When Satsuki had retrieved a tiny tube and a few pieces of gauze she returned to tending to Ryuko's forehead. Ryuko curled her thumbs into the loops on Satsuki's jeans and pulled at her until she was sitting firmly in her lap. "Hey."

"What? And don't move." Satsuki had finished wiping up the mess from Ryuko's face and was beginning to uncap the liquid stitches.

"Could you like- I don't know. Just be straight up with me. Tell me how you feel about me 'cause I can't take this 'beating around the bush' shit anymore." Satsuki's lips were slightly parted in concentration as she applied the glue to Ryuko's wound.

"Was it really so hard to tell?"

"Yea, a little." Ryuko sighed in relief as the cut was sealed closed. She hadn't realized how much pain she had been in until it was gone.

"It was because you kept assuming, Ryuko. I told you to not do that." Once she had finished, Satsuki threw the tube on the ground with everything else. She crossed her arms over her chest indignantly before continuing. "You really want to know how I feel about you?"

Ryuko nodded.

"Fine." Satsuki took an elongated breath. "I think you're an idiot. I think you're belligerent, crude, and an absolute barbarian at times. But you know what?" her face softened as she unfolded her arms and placed her fingers gently against Ryuko's cheeks. "I love you, Matoi Ryuko. So stop assuming."

"I love you too, Satsuki." She pinched Ryuko's cheeks gently before getting off her lap and beginning to clean up the bloody mess on the floor.

"I already knew that." Ryuko narrowed her eyes in confusion. She was thankful for the liquid stitches when no blood ran down her face.

"How?"

"It was obvious during our first sexual encounter." She deposited the rags into a trash can. "Was it not for you?"

Ryuko was baffled as she thought back on it. "No. Not at all. I thought we were just doing some weird friends with benefits thing."

Satsuki laughed briefly, causing Ryuko to seethe internally. "I had thought I conveyed it well enough." She returned to Ryuko with a cup of water. "I'll attempt to be more blunt from now on."

Ryuko gulped down the whole glass before replying. "I'd appreciate that."

"Ryuko." The tone Satsuki addressed her with was deadly serious. She kneeled in front of her, her hands laying across both of Ryuko's thighs.

"What is it?" she bent forward, stabilizing herself with Satsuki's shoulders so she could place a singular kiss to her forehead.

"Please. No more fighting. At least, if you do, just go to a hospital. Seeing this once was enough for me." The pain in Satsuki's voice made Ryuko's stomach drop.

"Yea. Sorry I ended up here." There was a moment where neither of them moved. "And that I don't remember it."

Satsuki snorted at her added comment. "Can you stand up?"

"Maybe." She attempted to brace herself on the back of the toilet. When she pushed to get up her hand slipped and she flushed it instead. "Ok, maybe not without some help."

She closed her eyes and took a calming breath, readying herself mentally and physically for the walk she was going to have to endure to get to Satsuki's room. Much to her surprise, when she opened them she found herself cradled in Satsuki's arms, being carried bridle-style out of the bathroom and down the hall.

"I always forget that you're ripped."

"How do you think you got to the bathroom?" Ryuko shrugged, trying to keep her hands from running up Satsuki's neck and into her hair… Satsuki laid her gently in bed before Ryuko could get ahead of herself.

"Man, my head is killing me." She whined the words while attempting to will her limbs to work.

"I can't give you any pain killers because of the alcohol in your system." Satsuki sat beside her, brushing the hair away from Ryuko's forehead. "Though, I can think of one thing that would help you get to sleep."

Ryuko didn't miss the playful undertone to Satsuki's words. "Oh, man, really?"

She shrugged her response. Ryuko noted that Satsuki's fingers lingered a little longer than usual on her face.

"I'm not gonna make you do that, Sats."

"You wouldn't be _making_ me do anything. If it will help you fall asleep, it's a win-win for both of us." They stared at each other. Ryuko noticed the lines on Satsuki's face and the purple blotches beneath her eyes. "I won't be able to get any rest until you're asleep."

Ryuko groaned. "Shit. Ok. Fine. Do your thing, but please, _please_ do not make me do that rolling orgasm shit. I'll just end up hurting myself more."

Satsuki nodded her reply before tracing her fingers down Ryuko's body to undo the button of her jeans. Getting out of her pants was easier than Ryuko had thought with Satsuki's help. It still hurt, though, and she hissed in protest when Satsuki leaned a bit too much against her hip.

"Be gentle with me for once, ok?" Ryuko chuckled and ran her fingers idly through Satsuki's hair as she leaned down and brushed her lips against the darkened spot on Ryuko's side.

"Odd request coming from you." Standing up, Satsuki leaned over Ryuko and aided her in removing her panties. After taking her own pants off, Satsuki kneeled down between Ryuko's legs, her arm extending and fingers abruptly running across her warmth. "How are you this wet?"

Ryuko sighed her content at Satsuki's touch, her hips attempting to gyrate against it only to find that it was too painful to do so. "Like I'd know? Probably some freaky adrenaline thing."

"Mmm…" Satsuki's voice trailed off as she leaned down. Ryuko gasped as Satsuki's tongue tested the tenderness of her sensitive bud. She reached down, running her fingers through Satsuki's bangs while watching her press the flat of her tongue against the length of her slit.

"Haaaah, I will never get over how hot that is." A serious gleam in Satsuki's eyes told Ryuko to be quiet and she took it to heart, leaning her head back and opting for enjoying the situation in its entirety.

She had been thankful for Satsuki's continued understanding of her nether regions when she reached her climax completely and didn't roll into a continuous set of orgasms. Satsuki had set out a deliberate pace, pressing her tongue firmly against Ryuko's heat and keeping her actions continuous. It didn't take long for Ryuko to crest, her body shuddering momentarily before collapsing, thoroughly spent.

Satsuki stretched afterwards, reaching towards the ceiling before reaching out and grabbing Ryuko's panties. Ryuko unwillingly put them back on as Satsuki laid next to her, pulling a blanket over both of them and carefully settling her cheek against Ryuko's shoulder. "You alright?"

"Yea. Fantastic." Ryuko yawned her response while managing to drape her arm over Satsuki's shoulders. As fatigue set in, Ryuko recalled a conversation point she had meant to touch on. "Hey, Satsuki."

"Mmnn?" her response was half-hearted and Ryuko could tell that sleep was imminent.

"When's your graduation?"

"The day after tomorrow." Satsuki angled her face further into Ryuko's shoulder before talking again. "Do you want to come?"

Her arm instinctively wrapped tighter around Satsuki and she could feel a smile where Satsuki's lips were pressed against her skin. "Yea. I-" she cleared her throat, "I'd like that a lot."

"Goodnight, Ryuko."

"Yea. 'Night, Sats."

The next day had started off with Ryuko waking up to an empty bed. She had thought she was completely alone in the apartment until Mako had burst in, a tray of food in her hands. It was later explained that Satsuki had called her in the morning, asking if Mako was able to come over and keep an eye on Ryuko while she went to work.

"She was _super_ worried." Mako jammed a few pillows behind Ryuko's back, propping her up so she could eat. "I told her that I had seen you in worse shape!"

"I'm sure that really put her mind at ease, Mako."

"And Satsuki said that you just showed up at her door! Something about hearing a banging sound and finding you passed out on the doormat!"

After swallowing a mouthful of food, Ryuko responded. "It's going to be a mystery how I got here. Probably a good thing I did, though."

Ryuko spent the rest of the day stretching out her aching limbs, eventually sending Mako home when she managed to walk the length of the apartment on her own. When Satsuki had gotten home and found Ryuko in the living room she nearly dropped the mail in her hands.

"Matoi Ryuko!" Satsuki deposited her things on the kitchen table and fixed Ryuko with a look that would've made Ryuko curl in on herself four months ago.

"Kiryuin Satsuki." Her tone was flat and utterly nonchalant. Ryuko fought to keep the pointed look on her face long enough to hold Satsuki's laptop out to her. "One more level."

When Satsuki took it, Ryuko chuckled, patting the spot beside her. "You are absolutely incredible."

Satsuki's snide remark wasn't lost on Ryuko. "You shouldn't worry about me so much. I've done way worse."

"So I've been told." Ryuko patted the spot on the couch again and Satsuki rolled her eyes, taking a seat anyways.

The next day found them with characters maxed in level and busy with Satsuki's graduation ceremony. Ryuko was bemused to find out upon arrival that Satsuki's friends had been invited as well. She shrugged it off, eventually taking a seat next to Nonon and pestering her for the duration to ward off boredom. Ryuko's battered look got her more than a few pointed remarks but she hardly cared. There was something weighing on her mind as she watched Satsuki cross the stage to get her diplomas and she made a point to bring it up as soon as they had returned to her apartment.

"Satsuki." She turned back to Ryuko, placing the television remote on the coffee table after turning the TV on.

"What is it?" her arms settled over Ryuko's shoulders as she approached. The conversation topic was lost as Ryuko eyed Satsuki from head to toe in her graduation gown.

"Congrats. You worked hard for it." Ryuko smirked as Satsuki leaned in to brush their lips together. "Maybe I'll have to do something special for you?"

It was Satsuki's turn to grin. "How about you just get your degree? That'd be special enough."

"Pfff- although." Ryuko paused, holding Satsuki in a thoughtful look. "I did want to talk about that. Our future and all."

"As did I." Ryuko was the one to raise an inquisitive eyebrow, all too aware that it had become habit at that point. "What do you plan on doing with…?" Satsuki's words trailed off and so did her eyes as they angled away at the television. Following suit, Ryuko turned slightly to find what had caught Satsuki's attention.

"Oh, hey. They're talking about the game we've been-" the television went dark. When Ryuko turned back, Satsuki had the remote in her hand. "Why did you turn it off?"

Satsuki glanced away, looking anywhere that wasn't Ryuko. She continued to hold Satsuki with a prying glare.

"Give me that." Snatching the remote from Satsuki's hand, Ryuko clicked the TV back on before Satsuki could begin to protest.

The news report had been about the studio behind the creation of the game they had been playing. It praised the work done by the team and as pictures flashed by on the screen, Ryuko's mouth continued to unhinge progressively.

"Is… is that Inumuta? And Gamagoori? Holy shit that's fuckin' Nonon and Sanageyama." It was at the last photo that Ryuko's grip on the remote slipped and it dropped to the floor. "Oh man. No way. No fuckin' way."

"Ryuko-"

"You're the CEO?!" Ryuko couldn't pick apart her emotions enough to discern what she was feeling. All she knew was that the incredulous look on her face had Satsuki's tone betraying a certain amount of concern. "Oh man. Oooooooh man."

Ryuko's lips were twisting into a grin as she pieced information together so fast it was difficult for her to comprehend.

"You." Ryuko jabbed her index finger into Satsuki's chest. Instead of throwing Ryuko over her shoulder, Satsuki just stared at her with unease. "You were the GM who deleted my character, weren't you?"

Satsuki looked to the side again, her face starting to color. Despite herself, Ryuko just laughed. She couldn't even find it in herself to be angry at the situation. It was all so ridiculous that it hardly seemed real.

"It all makes sense." Ryuko looked up, thinking back on certain events. "Your willingness to help me level, never telling me about your work, how awkward your friends were at that party…" she scoffed, her mind still racing. "Shit, and you know what's even crazier?"

She dislodged her finger from Satsuki's chest, using it instead to grab Satsuki's chin and lock eyes with her.

"I'm not even upset over it. I'd completely forgotten about the whole character deletion thing until right now. But now that I know, you are _so_ not getting off the hook easy for it." Satsuki raised an eyebrow at Ryuko's words. "When were you going to tell me, Satsuki?"

"Right now, actually."

"Really?"

"Yes. Though now that you mention it, what _are_ you planning to do with that knowledge, Ryuko?" the playfulness in Satsuki's voice had Ryuko leaning in to kiss her.

"I want a fuckin' rematch."

She could feel Satsuki grinning against her mouth before nipping at her bottom lip. "Oh? Care to make a bet, Matoi?"

"Oh, this shit again, huh?"

"Mmmhm."

"Alright, I'll bite, Kiryuin." She leaned back in and bit at the tip of Satsuki's nose.

"If I win, you have to come work for my studio as head tester." Ryuko scrunched her face in confusion.

"That's it?"

"That's it. Inumuta agreed that having you on the team would prove to be invaluable."

"Well, shit. Ok." She paused, thinking about all the possibilities for her side of the bet before settling on one that seemed particularly even. "If I win, we never play that fucking game ever again."

"Deal." Satsuki's fingers had worked their way into the mess of Ryuko's hair, scratching and massaging her scalp.

"It's a deal, then. But I don't want to see you for like, a week." She could tell Satsuki was about to complain so Ryuko pinched her rump to silence her. "It's only fair. Preparation and what not. Plus, you fuckin' deserve it."

Satsuki narrowed her eyes but resigned to it. "Fine. But we'll be doing the duel at the office. Being closer to the server and on computers that are the same will cause fewer discrepancies in the variables."

"Alright." They kissed again and Ryuko squirmed at the pressure that coiled at her core.

"Matoi. Can you even make it a week without me?" she growled against Satsuki's lips.

"I don't know, Kiryuin. Can _you_ make it that long?" a thoughtful hum was the only response Ryuko received as they pressed their mouths together again. Satsuki's tongue teased her lips and Ryuko pulled back, holding her at arm's length. "Ok. You know what? I'm going to make up for an entire week tonight. Right now. And then yes. I _will_ be able to go an entire week without seeing you."

"Prove it, Matoi."

Ryuko did manage to make it the entire week without seeing Satsuki. She spent the majority of her time gaming, and when she wasn't gaming she was either sleeping or eating. It had become a race at that point. She knew Satsuki would be doing the same thing. They had been planning on working towards getting the best equipment for their characters after Satsuki's graduation, anyways.

By the time an entire week had passed, Ryuko was exhausted but confident. She had complete faith in her skills and on top of that, she knew her opponent. So when she burst through the double doors to the sleek entrance of Satsuki's gaming studio, Ryuko wasted no time in facing the challenge head on.

"Lady Satsuki! Why the hell are we leaving trash lying around?! It's gonna stink the place up!" Nonon saw Ryuko first as she was guided by the front desk girl to Satsuki's office.

"Hey, Nonon. You ready for me to rip _your lady_ a new one?" the look on Nonon's face was enough to please Ryuko for the day.

"Please. Lady Satsuki is on a whole different level from you. You don't stand a chance." To Ryuko's chagrin, Nonon had followed them to Satsuki's office, presumably not wanting to miss the action.

It only figured that once they had gotten to Satsuki's office that the rest of her entourage would be waiting for Ryuko's arrival. They each addressed Ryuko before letting her through the doors to Satsuki's office.

"Ryuko. You're early." She strode into the room, hands in her pockets as she approached where Satsuki was seated behind a modest desk.

"Is that a problem?" they both grinned at her question. Satsuki stood from her chair and moved to stand beside Ryuko.

"Not at all. Just means I could see you sooner." Satsuki made a move as if to lean in and capture Ryuko's lips.

But while Ryuko was enchanted to be in Satsuki's presence after a week of being away from her, she still leaned away from the action. "Your friends are watching. And we've got business to attend to." Ryuko pointed at the doorway to the room where the small group of people were still clustered.

"Mmm, I suppose for once you're right. Let's go."

The entire group moved from Satsuki's office to another area of the building. Ryuko was mesmerized by the stacks that comprised the servers they passed. So much so that when they did finally get to their destination, Ryuko nearly stepped on Satsuki's heels.

"Sit, Matoi." There were two computers set up in front of them, the monitors facing away from each other. Satsuki sat down and motioned for Ryuko to do the same.

"Good luck, Lady Satsuki!" Nonon spoke up as Ryuko took a seat. She scowled at her.

"You're such a fuckin' suck up."

"Shut it, Fuckface. Can't wait to see you get your shit handed to you." Ryuko looked up briefly as she logged on.

"Hey Nonon, you do know that if I don't win I'll be working here, right?" her mouth hung open at Ryuko's question. "Guess you're rootin' for the wrong person, huh?"

"You didn't?" Nonon's admonition was met with a shrug on Satsuki's part.

"You'll just have to get used to Ryuko being around, Nonon. I don't plan on losing."

Both Ryuko and Satsuki had logged on and prepared themselves. They glanced over their monitors at one another.

"Ready?" Satsuki spoke and quirked her lips.

"You bet." Ryuko nodded and smiled, lowering her eyes back to her screen.

The countdown started right after that and it was all Ryuko could do to not let the adrenaline kick in prematurely as the timer ticked down.

 _3… 2… 1…_

Ryuko's start off had been worse than she had expected. Her previous duel with Satsuki had started stronger and she was cursing under her breath as her health bar started to plummet. It took her almost a minute to get into a stable rhythm. The keyboard beneath her fingers was far too different from her laptops.

What helped ease the worry in Ryuko's mind was that it seemed Satsuki was having much the same issue. Her ability activations seemed to be just a few milliseconds behind what they usually were. That was when Ryuko knew what the outcome to the duel was going to be.

She had been practicing the last week, working towards re-training herself in the way she played completely. Ryuko was aware that Satsuki wouldn't be fooled by anything that was finite in change. It would have to be utterly different. So Ryuko shook her head, preparing herself mentally, and then putting her plan into action.

It was dangerous at first. Ryuko knew that, but seeing her health come nearly the thickness of a fingernail away from being depleted hadn't helped her nerves. Nor had the whooping cheer of Satsuki's entourage.

"Quiet!" Satsuki silenced them as Ryuko's health crept back up. She knew Satsuki didn't know what was going on. She wouldn't know until after the battle was over. Ryuko grinned as Satsuki's health dropped.

"Good game, Sats." Ryuko dealt the final blow and stood from her seat in triumph, finally getting to pump her fist in victory. "Man that felt good!"

It only struck her how abnormally quiet everyone else was until she had turned back and saw Satsuki's face set emotionlessly. It caused Ryuko's heart to constrict when she caught a glimpse of disappointment in her eyes. She sighed, letting the elated feelings she had go as she took a few steps around the computers.

"Here." Ryuko locked eyes with Satsuki as she reached into her back pocket, retrieving a folded paper. She unfolded it and held it in the space between them. "It's my resume. I want to apply for the job of head tester."

The glint in Satsuki's eyes changed as she reached out and took the paper, leaning back in her seat and crossing her left leg over her right.

She scanned the page, her eyebrows set in a thoughtful angle before her face cracked into a smile.

"Welcome to the team, Matoi."

"You know, I can't even be surprised by the things you do anymore." Ryuko stated blandly, sitting up on her colorful towel to receive a beer as Satsuki sat beside her.

"I told you that there would be business to attend to before we got to the vacation part." She gulped down a few mouthfuls of her beverage before lounging back and watching oceans waves roll in beneath an amber sunset.

"Yes, well. Let's not even bring up that you completely neglected to mention your bumbling gaggle would be joining as well." A snort followed her words and she glanced up at Satsuki, taking in the sight of her in an immodest bikini. The robe she had put on over it was barely enough to cover her shoulders let alone anything else.

"They needed a trip. Plus, they made dealing with the shareholders easier."

"Oh c'mon. You did it because you knew Nonon would've thrown a fit if we took a trip alone together." Satsuki looked Ryuko from head to toe and back before reaching out and snatching the sunglasses off Ryuko's nose. "Hey-"

"Good job on graduating." Ryuko was silenced by Satsuki's lips against her own. She cupped the back of Satsuki's head, prolonging the kiss for a few brief moments. "Surprised you were able to do it on top of working at the studio."

"Yea, well. It wasn't fuckin' easy. You work your employees to the bone, you know that?" she squirmed a little at the feel of Satsuki's fingers running down the curve of her neck.

"If you want, I could make up for it…" With a reluctant groan, Ryuko pushed Satsuki away by her shoulders.

"Oh. You're definitely going to make up for it. But not before I take a shower. I've got sand in places I'd rather not mention." Ryuko rolled out from underneath her and stood, holding her hand out to help Satsuki stand as well.

"Always considerate at the oddest times, I see." They paused a moment after Ryuko wrenched Satsuki to her feet. "I am proud of you."

"Yea, yea. You've said that, like, eight times since we got here." Scratching at the back of her head, Ryuko wrapped her other arm around Satsuki's waist to drag her in close. "Thanks, though. For everything." Satsuki just shook her head, a brief smile on her lips before leaning in and pressing their mouths together again.

 _Man that game was shit._ Ryuko thought to herself, her lips still occupied. _But at least it got me here._

"C'mon, Kiryuin Satsuki. You still owe me a graduation gift."


End file.
